Rose Tinted Clouds
by Katsumi Nara
Summary: Ino decides it's time to stop living a lie and express how she truly feels... but she needs a little help. ShikaxIno, takes place during the three years before Shippuden. R&R Good reviews mean more chapters
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One – My Heart's Bouquet

Shikamaru dodged behind a nearby stump as a flurry of pointed weaponry flew at his head. This wasn't good, there wasn't anywhere he could run; and his opponent knew his abilities all too well. He chanced on a basic trick and sent a clone running in one direction as he ran in the other. No luck. He found himself ducking a kunai that would have otherwise pinned his nose to the tree he was passing. He rolled forward to hide behind a large boulder. All he had were academy tricks at this point. He quickly formed hand signs. Moments later a tabby cat emerged from behind the rock.

"And just where do you think you're going?" He heard his foe screech, followed by the sound of a senbon flying through the air and hitting his transformed clone. He had done it. Now his location was unknown to his adversary. Now if he was careful enough…

CRACK! A rock the size of his ponytail smashed Shikamaru in the back of the head. As he fell to the ground he rolled over clutching where he had been struck. "Damn it" he thought to himself, his vision clearing up just in time for him to spring backwards out of the way of several kunai. Where the hell was she getting all these weapons from? He spun around to hide behind a tree. Gritting his teeth in frustration he finally cried out;

"Alright, I'm sorry!"

He waited for a response of some kind. None came. He chanced a peek around the trunk. He saw his opponent standing, facing away from him, arms folded, loose scrolls by her side. Making a mental note to thank Tenten, he walked cautiously over to the sulking girl.

"I didn't mean it to sound how it did" he explained, putting his hand on the girls shoulder. "When I said it was pointless I meant that you shouldn't care that much about your appearance. I wasn't trying to insinuate that you're f-"

That's as far as he got before being sent flying across the training grounds as Ino had swung around to deliver a right hook that would have made even Tsunade flinch. Before Shikamaru could recover, the blonde kunoichi ran away, tears flowing from her eyes. Within minutes she was back home. Her father was busy with an interrogation and her mother was in Suna arranging a business deal with their florist; so she was undisturbed.

She wished she could control herself better; but it really got to her. Everyone told her that her dieting was pointless, that she didn't need it. Even if they explained themselves she heard it as "Dieting is pointless; you will always be fat". Normally she could just ignore it. But when Shikamaru said it, she felt as though she'd been stabbed; and she knew how _that_ felt, so this was no exaggeration. She already felt useless, which was why she was trying to learn from Tenten how to use various ninja tools to make up for her lack of useful combat jutsu; and that was on top of medical training. To feel like she was fat at the same time was too much.

But she knew that wasn't really why she had been hurt by Shikamaru's comment. As much as she might try to convince herself that she liked Sasuke, that she could only be interested in the coolest guy in the village, she knew it was all a façade. For nearly five years she'd been lying to herself. After all, who could love such a lazy, obnoxious, know-it-all, unmotivated, reasonable, caring, friendly….

"Damn it, Ino!" she scolded herself as she began sorting through the shop's inventory to try and distract herself. She couldn't help but comment on the meaning of each flower as she went; Amaryllis – Pride, Timidity, Angelica; inspiration, Baby's Breath; everlasting love… she stopped. Picking up a stalk of the last one she sighed slightly. She'd had enough. No more hiding, no more lying. She laid out a sheet of paper and placed the white baby's breath along it.

She added red carnations between each strand of baby's breath; admiration, and a heart that aches for the recipient. In the middle of these she placed one stalk of forget-me-nots; True Love, memories. As she placed this she remembered how Shikamaru had always looked out for her and Chouji on their missions, and even more so how he had always watched over her body while her soul was out of it, how she wished he would hold her while her mind was present. She couldn't help but smile as she danced back and forth between the stock and the front counter; adding more flowers to the bouquet: Acacias, gladiolus, white jonquils, red tulips, magenta zinnia. Ino bit her lower lip when she rolled it up. The size it had gotten and she hadn't even made the centre yet.

She was very precise with the flowers she put into the centrepiece. A ring of white violets; "let's take a chance on happiness". Blue salvia for the inner ring; "I think of you". Two pink, thornless roses; love at first sight and perfect happiness. And in the very centre: A white chrysanthemum. Truth. Ino carefully placed the centrepiece amongst the rest; finishing the bouquet.

She looked at it with a determined smile. "I'm going to give this to Shikamaru before the week is through" she thought to herself. She placed it on the front desk and sat down sighing. "At least, that's what I'd _like_ to believe". She muttered to herself. She felt herself dozing off when suddenly.

"Wow that's a big bunch of flowers" sang a cheerful voice.

Ino's round blue eyes snapped open. Leaning back in her chair she saw Tenten admiring the bouquet. Before she knew what she was doing, Ino had swiped the bouquet from the table and dashed upstairs to put it in her room. She came back to an eyebrow raised in confusion. "Ino, what was-" she began, but the blonde kunoichi cut her off.

"A-an order! A customer called in and….what!?" she asked noticing a sly grin spread across Tenten's face. Ino glanced sideways at the mirror that ran along the middle of the wall. Oh no! She was blushing furiously! It was times like this she cursed her pale skin and light hair, it made the red really stand out. She almost jumped clean through the roof when she turned back to find her friend's mischievous smile an inch from her face.

"So who's it for" she asked, clearly struggling not to giggle. Ino suddenly became very interested in a chipped floor tile off to the side.  
"None of your business" she answered huffily. The brunette slid down to crouch in front of her field of vision; persistent little pest. Tenten thought to herself: it couldn't be Sasuke, because he was still… away… so who else? One of her team mates? Well if that were the case Chouji wasn't very likely, no offence to either of them but Ino was a little bit shallow and he was… a little bit on the large side… so…

"Shikamaru?"

Ino gulped and answered a bit too loudly to be plausible, "N-no! Of course not!", so much for 'no more lying'. Not that it mattered, her reaction was all the excuse Tenten needed to squeal and hug her tightly, spouting off comments like "You're so cute when you're defensive" and, "I'm so happy for you, moving on, and you two would make such an adorable couple!".

Once Ino had regained her breath and was certain that all her ribs were intact, she sat back down and stared gloomily at the floor, still blushing like crazy. Tenten gave her a questioning look. She sighed and sat cross legged on the floor in front of her, placing the tip of her finger on Ino's chin she lifted her head up.  
"I've never seen someone so unhappy to be in love, what's wrong" she asked, although she had a slight idea.  
Ino's blushed deepened at the word "love". She babbled incoherently for moment, and when she was finally able to stammer out a sentence she made a mental note to apologise to Hinata for all the times she had teased her for her nervousness; it must feel horrible to feel like this all the time.  
"I-I-I don't know how t-to give it to him" she finally stuttered, "Sh-should I give it to him in person, or leave it for him to f-find?"

Tenten put a hand t her chin in thought. That was a good question. Though a better one would be _could_ Ino give it to him in person? It didn't seem like it just yet. But then it would be a case of where to leave the bouquet? How to get it there without Shikamaru noticing anything; after all he was a sharp guy… though apparently not when it came to girls, she thought. Eventually she figured that it would have to be the second option. Ino gulped when Tenten explained her logic.  
"But… how? And where? And when?" the blonde asked nervously. Tenten thought for a minute, she had wondered this too. Suddenly her sly smile from earlier returned.  
"We'll get some… _expert_ advice…"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: Expert Advice

"What are we doing here?" Ino asked her friend as they approached the large stately home. The older girl turned her head to look at the confused blonde.  
"What you can't tell?" She asked, astounded, "Who did you think I meant by 'expert'? Kiba?" she finished unable to contain her own laughter at the idea of Kiba being subtle. Ino's face still looked blank. Tenten sighed as she rung the doorbell.

She was a little bit surprised when Neji answered. She had expected Hiashi.  
"Tenten" Neji stated, sounding as surprised as she looked, "I don't have time to train today, I'm sorry" he continued, casting a confused look in Ino's direction. Tenten recovered and answered quickly, the colour in her cheeks growing ever so slightly.  
"No, no! It's fine, actually. We're looking for Hinata actually"  
Ino's eyes darted in Tenten's direction briefly. Hinata? Then she thought for a moment and everything suddenly fell in place. Of course; who would know more about admiring from the shadows. The raven haired girl had practically a lifetime of stalking Naruto to claim as experience. Ino felt a twang of guilt; Naruto was still away training his ass off somewhere with that old man so he could bring Sasuke back, and here she was; unable to focus on even a basic C rank mission because of her goddamn emotions. She put this aside as she followed Neji and Tenten through the Hyuga manor.

He led them through the ground floor and outside to a courtyard of sorts. Ino was too busy looking at the beautifully decorated archways and corridors. She had never been anywhere near the house before. It wasn't that she disliked Hinata, she was just different; that was all. And she'd admittedly been afraid of Neji ever since he saw his fight with Hinata.  
"Hinata, you have guests" Neji called across the courtyard.  
Ino looked down, and realised that the courtyard was in fact a training field; and near the centre, panting and out of breath next to a large, heavily damaged wooden pole, was Hinata. She walked over and bowed to her cousin politely.  
"Thank you, brother" she said in her quiet voice.  
Neji bowed and walked away, presumably to return to whatever was keeping him from training. Hinata turned to the other two.  
"I'm sorry I'm not very presentable right now, if you would allow me ten minutes to freshen up?" the Hyuga girl requested, wondering what on earth Neji's team mate and Ino could possibly want to see her for. When the other two agreed she led them to a small sitting area in the west wing.

Ten minutes later Hinata returned, wearing her usual dark trousers and hooded top. She apologized for making the other girls wait and sat across from them, unsure exactly what to say. Thankfully Tenten broke the awkward silence.  
"So, Hinata, how's your training going?" she asked in a friendly tone. Hinata was slightly taken aback.  
"Oh, umm it's going well, thank you very much" she responded politely, "Neji tells me your missions have been going well lately" she offered. Tenten nodded.  
"Yeah they've been quite boring actually" she admitted. The awkward silence resumed.

Eventually Ino couldn't stand it. She had to say something, anything, it was getting too uncomfortable.  
"H-Hinata?" she stuttered slightly, and immediately hoped she didn't think she was teasing her, "I want to apologize… for teasing you all these years".  
Both Hinata and Tenten turned to look at Ino. This was a surprise; Ino was known for being stubborn and set in her own opinions. If she thought someone was weird it took the world to change her mind. Hinata briefly thought that this apology may have been the reason for the visit, but then why would Tenten be surprised? So she simply answered.  
"Oh, no, don't worry about it. I know you were just trying to help really" Hinata answered, smiling and blushing. It was truly how she had looked at it. Ino teased her about her stammering to try to encourage her to stop. It was nice of her to apologize though. "Was there something else?" she asked, sensing that they were looking for a way to ease into the topic. Tenten spoke up.

"Well, yeah, actually" she said guiltily, scratching the back of her head , "You see, we need your help with something" she turned to look at Ino, who already looked a lot more relaxed. Hinata wondered what on earth she could help them with. Ino nodded and Tenten turned back to the Hyuga girl.  
"You see… Ino has something she needs to give to someone…someone _special_… but she can't give it to them directly you see…"  
Hinata blushed fully.  
"Oh!" she was surprised. She could never imagine that the Ino Yamanaka, which she had grown up thinking was so confident and forward, would have any trouble making her feelings known. Hinata supposed that admiration had the same effect on everyone. She assumed they had come to her because she had often left things for Naruto which he never figured out were from her until someone told him he was being an idiot and pointed it out.  
"Well… if it's not too rude to ask… who is it you want to give the gift to, Ino?" the Hyuga heiress asked shyly. She was intrigued because it couldn't be Sasuke, but she had always been under the impression that _he_ was the one Ino had eyes for.

Ino responded with a blush that almost rivalled Hinata's. She gulped and took a deep breath before stammering out:  
"Sh- Shikamaru-" it was the first time she's actually admitted it herself. Once more her gaze hit the floor as she waited for a response from her fellow kunoichi. How had she gotten into this? Yesterday she would never have believed that she'd be sitting in Hyuga manor, asking Hinata to help her give Shikamaru a gift.  
Hinata was slightly surprised. But it was brief, as she'd had a suspicion that it might have been Shikamaru. The shy girl was very observant, and not just of Naruto. Now she thought of it she couldn't think of a time where Ino hadn't been happy when she was with her team; even when she was yelling or complaining she seemed to be enjoying herself. Was that because she was with him? It was sweet in a way.  
"Oh, well I'll help in any way I can" she answered, smiling. Tenten smiled and cheered jubilantly.  
"Atta girl, Hinata!" she exclaimed grinning, "Us girl's got to stick together after all"

Hinata smiled. She had to admit it was a nice feeling that someone felt they could turn to her for help, even though they barely knew her. It made her feel useful, which was a change. Although she wasn't sure it was such a good idea not to be direct. She couldn't just let it slide, so she turned to Ino.

"Umm, are you sure you wouldn't be better giving it directly to him? I mean… you're usually so confident so I guess… I thought you wouldn't have any problem saying how you feel… " she stopped and waved her hands defensively "N-not that I'm calling you a coward or anything it's j-just… I don't want you to end up like… well… like me…"  
Ino froze. What did Hinata mean? End up like her. Then it hit her. The reason they'd come to Hinata; her renown for having admired Naruto secretly for years. Could Ino live like that? With Shikamaru never knowing? And if she did she was at a greater risk of heartbreak than Hinata. After all, there weren't any other girls for _her_ to worry about. But Ino knew that Shikamaru had at least one other girl who might try to seduce him; if she wasn't already.

Ino mulled it over. After a minute or two she came to a decision.  
"I just need to gauge his reaction, after that I'll be more direct" she answered, but Hinata's face still looked sad and doubtful, "Really I mean it, he'll know how I feel by the end of the month, otherwise you and Tenten can tell him. No matter how much I protest if I haven't told him you absolutely _must_".  
Hinata sighed. It was better than nothing.  
"Alright" she conceded. She paused for a moment, a look of thoughtfulness across her pale face, "I have a plan, it involves being… a bit more direct that you planned" she giggled slightly at the look of horror on Ino's face, "Don't panic, trust me" the Hyuga kunoichi smiled happily.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three – Directly Indirect

Shikaku Nara opened his front door the next day to what appeared to be a bouquet of flowers on legs. He pondered in confusion for a moment before a familiar voice spoke out from behind the flowers.  
"Yamanaka Florist, delivery service. I've been asked to deliver these to Shikamaru, is he home?" Ino asked, thankful that Shikamaru's dad couldn't see her blush behind the masses of flowers. The older shinobi scratched the scar on the right of his chin. This was unusual; he didn't know that the florist had a delivery policy.  
"I'm sorry he's busy helping prepare for the upcoming chunin exams" he answered.  
"Oh, well can I leave them with you then, for when he gets home?" Ino asked she already knew that Shikamaru wasn't home; she had made sure of it. Shikaku took the massive bouquet and Ino wheeled around, calling back with barely a turn of the head.  
"Goodbye sir, please tell Shikamaru I said 'hi', and that I'm sorry about yesterday".

With that she waited until she heard the door shut and then dived into the bushes. Here Tenten was waiting. She gave Ino an impatiently questioning look. The blonde ninja gave her a wink and a thumb up. Now for the tricky part; thanks to Hinata's insane tracking skills she knew Shikamaru would be home soon. So Ino looked around and spotted a spider by her leg. Linking the tips of her forefingers and touching the tips of her thumbs together she held the rest of her fingers straight up and aimed her jutsu. If this worked…

"Mind Transfer Jutsu"

Suddenly she was _very_ close to the ground; looking up at her body, which was now in Tenten's arms. She couldn't help but feel a bit guilty. That was Shikamaru's place; holding her while she was incapacitated. But it was a necessary sacrifice of a minor purity. Tenten darted off to their agreed safe location (Ino's room, her father was out again, and her mother hadn't sent word that she was on her way home yet).

It didn't take Ino long to get used to being a spider. She made her way inside the Nara house. Inside she saw Shikaku apparently searching for a tag on the bouquet. "Nosy little…" Ino thought bitterly. She crawled up onto the roof, positioning herself above the bouquet. Carefully she lowered herself into it, on the side opposite of Shikaku. Here she would sit and wait.

************

Shikamaru trudged up the path to his doorway. Today had been such a pain; first he had to sit through a lecture from the Hokage about village hospitality and peaceful relations etcetera. Then he had to dart around that damn forest setting up observation cameras. He was tired out and wanted nothing more than to clamber up on the roof and watch the night sky roll in overhead.

He slammed the door behind him and sighed. It was good to be home. That was, until his dad appeared right in his face; grinning like an idiot.  
"Dad… that's quite possibly the scariest thing I've ever seen in my life…" he commented, "I'm tired, what do you want?" he got the feeling he would regret asking as Shikaku stood up straight and chuckled slightly.  
"I want to know who your secret admirer is" he commented, his son gave him a blank look of confusion, "Ino showed up today with a massive bouquet of flowers; she said she was delivering them, and they were for you" he explained, "Oh and she says she's sorry for yesterday".

The bruise on Shikamaru's cheek throbbed painfully at the memory. But he ignored this and gave his dad one of his signature, sceptic and quizzical glares. In response his father nodded towards his room. Sighing somewhat irritably, the chunin headed in the direction of the sliding door. He couldn't for the life of him think who would give him flowers; he'd have to ask Ino about it tomorrow.

As he slid open the door he realised that his dad had been understating heavily when he described the bouquet as "massive". The thing took up a good quarter of his room. He immediately started looking for something that might give away the sender's identity. He thought he'd found a hair, but just then a spider scuttled out from under a petal and into another of the flowers. So it must just have been a string of web.

He couldn't help but smile. Even if he wasn't really a flowers type if guy, it was a nice thought. He couldn't help but think that the arrangement was really well done. He wondered if that had been the work of the florist or the person sending the flowers. Just another question for Ino, he guessed. He could see it now, she'd either tease him or yell at him for asking so many questions. He hung up his jacket on the back of the door and glanced back down at the bouquet as he climbed through his self-built door up onto the roof.

************

Ino sat and listened to the rumblings of conversation outside as Shikaku and Shikamaru were talking. She briefly forgot she was a spider and held her breath when Shikamaru came in, trying to keep quiet. She soon regained her senses as she realized that one of her hairs was stuck between two acacia petals. She scuttled past Shikamaru's line of vision, hoping her deception would work. It seemed to, thankfully, so she hid again. She felt so happy when he smiled, and even as he left he couldn't take his eyes off it.

It was just after he closed his trapdoor that Ino realised she was running low on chakra, so she quickly released her Jutsu and opened her eyes in her room, lying on her four-poster bed. Sitting up she saw Tenten scribbling away, setting up more weapon scrolls. The blonde groaned slightly as she felt her arms weaken. She was exhausted. Her friend heard her and dashed over, leaping up to kneel on the bed beside Ino.  
"So? What did he think?" she asked excitedly. It had been boring waiting here with nothing to do.  
Ino smiled, her eyes unfocused, staring at the top of her bed.  
"He liked it… he really liked it…" She said tiredly. Tenten's face lit up with an ecstatic grin as she hugged the blonde kunoichi.  
"Oh good for you!" she congratulated before asking, "So when are you going to tell him?"

But Ino didn't hear her. She had drifted off to sleep; too worn out to keep her eyes open. She was in total bliss; she had been so worried that Shikamaru would find the flowers a nuisance and just get rid of them. But he actually _liked _them. She hadn't felt so happy in a long time. She couldn't wait to tell Hinata; after all it was thanks to her that everything went so well. Ino felt so bad about how badly she ad misjudged and mistreated the poor girl. She decided she would make it up to her… somehow.

It was only just dawn when Ino woke up. She found Tenten had fallen asleep on the fluffy rug by her bed. Yawning as quietly as she could, she made her way to the kitchen to pour herself a glass of water. She could still hardly believe how well yesterday had gone. She was only half paying attention until she noticed a sparrow land on the windowsill. It had a small scroll tied to its leg. "News from Mother" Ino thought as she untied it. By the end of it however her mood had dropped considerably;

_Dear family_

I will be in Sunagakure for another week due to frequent sandstorms. I am still safe and a nice young girl has offered to let me stay with her family. She says she's a friend of Shikamaru's, and was asking how he has been. Perhaps you know her, Ino honey? I think she said her name is Temari. Anyway write back so I know you got this.

See you later xx

Ino was fuming about "that sandy-haired wench" for the rest of the day. Even as she was walking to the Hyuga manor with Tenten she was imagining the three of them torturing Temari ruthlessly. It was no secret that Temari liked Shikamaru, just a little bit more than most people. Sure she showed it in a different way, but it as still clear; especially to Ino.

She curbed her homicidal thoughts as she thanked Hinata for all her help and asked her if there was any way she could possibly repay her kindness. The Hyuga heiress thought for a moment. Then she answered firmly.  
"Confess to him, then I will consider us even" She conditioned. Ino's face fell slightly. She'd been afraid of this.  
"I…I'm still not sure I can…" she said weakly, but crumbled under Hinata's crestfallen expression, "B-but if I had something… some sort of achievement that I could ride the momentum of, to get my mind in frame for it" she considered. At which Tenten jumped up.  
"The Chunin Exams!" she exclaimed, "Make a vow right here, on these sacred grounds that you _will_ begin your attempts to confess to Shikamaru on the day you pass your exams" Tenten thought for a moment, "Of course this means the previous condition whereby me and Hinata would intervene after a certain length of time is rescinded, do you accept!" she cried, pointing dramatically at Ino. The Yamanaka girl suddenly had a fire in her eyes.  
"I, Ino of the Yamanaka clan, accept your conditions" she declared.  
This was it; the Chunin Exams. Everything was on the line: her skill, her status as a ninja, her debt to Hinata…

… and her heart….

* * *

_Author's Note: I would like to thank those of you who have favourited this story, and also apologize as it may be quite some time before I can update again due to unforseen personal circumstances. but I WILL update again at some point, promise._

_Till next Time__  
__~ Katsumi_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four – A Necessary Third Wheel

Ino hummed merry tune the next morning. She danced her way through the morning, much to her father's confusion. He'd finally managed to get a day off work and had been surprised to come home to find a large sign on the front of his family's shop, stating that they now did deliveries. Ino had explained that it was just while her mother was away, as sort of an extra training/business move. Inoichi never bothered himself with the flower shop, so he just let his daughter get on with it.

Ino was just tying up the last of her bandages when she heard the bell chime. "I'll get it!" she shouted through to her father unnecessarily, he was too absorbed in the morning news to have even noticed the bell. Ino skipped down the stairs a flight at a time, and almost tripped when she saw who was standing outside, peering through the large glass window. She jogged over to open the door.

"Shikamaru? What are you doing here so early? Come in" she asked and demanded all in one breath. Her team mate sauntered through the door, yawning. He turned to face her. Ino felt her heart pounding a dent into her ribcage. Had he figured it out? She wasn't anywhere near ready for that! The shadow user put his hands behind his head and turned his face away from her, apparently looking at some rhododendrons adorning a hanging basket in the corner.  
"I'm sorry to bother you so early," he began, "But I have to be at the competition grounds soon and I figure I don't need this on my mind when I'm trying to concentrate". Ino's heart squeezed its way up to her throat. "So I was wondering… about the flowers you delivered yesterday…"  
"W-What about them?" Ino asked disguising her stutter with a yawn, she tried to get a look at his face in the wall mirror. Was he blushing? She couldn't quite see.  
"I was wondering… who were from?" Shikamaru finished quietly, trying to keep all tone out of his voice.

Several things went through Ino's mind at that moment. Two predictions of events as a result of each possible choice she could make, as well as a flurry of questions. Could she tell him now? Was it the right time? The right place? The right way? What if he rejected her? What if he laughed at her? What if it came out wrong? Was that worse than it not coming out at all? All this happened in a moment before she decided to answer.  
"The sender," She answered, somewhat shyly, "Wished to remain anonymous" It wasn't an outright lie. Shikamaru turned back to face her; he seemed slightly surprised."  
"Oh… well… I understand… makes sense I suppose" he said acceptingly, "If they had wanted me to know they would have included a note" he reasoned, "I'm sorry to bother you, and I'm sorry about the other day"  
"Don't worry about it, I over-reacted" Ino responded quietly, but quickly perked up as Shikamaru gave her a suspicious glance. The young chunin turned back to face her:  
"Hey can you do me a favour, if you see the person who sent me the flowers again?" he asked, Ino nodded stiffly, so he continued "Well… I'm not great with words, but… tell them I said thanks… and it was very brave of them… and very nice…" If he hadn't been blushing before he certainly was now. Ino couldn't help but smile at how cute it was. Add that to the light floating feeling that had replaced the choking sensation from before. The feeling lasted long after Shikamaru had left and Ino had drifted back upstairs to just lounge about in her room. Lost in her temporary bliss.

It was short-lived; as it turns out Tenten had been passing by on her way to training and spotted Shikamaru; looking thoughtful and blushing, and had immediately rushed to see Ino. After snapping Ino out of her reverie with a comment on how stupid she looked with an ear-to-ear grin plastered across her face, she demanded details. When Ino finished Tenten, who had been quivering the whole time, began screaming but had a pillow shoved in her face to stifle it. Ino didn't want her Dad thinking someone was getting killed. Once she was released, Tenten launched herself at Ino, half choking the life out of her with a hug.  
"You have no excuse now" she said slyly with a wink. "At least you know he won't take it the wrong way"  
Ino shook her head, and explained that she was sticking to her Chunin Exams plan. That way she would feel less guilty about focusing on things outside her ninja abilities.

Later that day she made her way to the training grounds where her team usually practised. There she found Chouji, no Shikamaru as expected, and… no Asuma? That was odd, not only was it unusual that Chouji would be training alone of his own free will but Asuma _always_ supervised them, kept them motivated and more often than he really ought to, rewarded their efforts. The blonde kunoichi dashed over to her team mate.  
"Good afternoon Chouji, Asuma-sensei not around today?"  
Chouji stopped his training briefly and turned to face his team mate. She hadn't referred to him by his weight; she was in an unusually good mood. He greeted her and told her that Asuma had told him to keep training while he went to check something and that, if she were to arrive, to tell her to wait for him to come back and discuss the exams with them. Ino smiled and began jumping around one of the training dummies, tossing various ninja tools at it, practising her aim on the move. The exams were exactly what she'd wanted to ask Asuma about.

It was about half an hour before their sensei returned, looking rather pleased. Ino suppressed a gag at the overwhelming stench of cologne coming off of him; clearly he'd been trying to cover the smell of smoke.  
"So how was your date with Kurenai-sensei?" she asked teasingly. She giggled as her sensei blushed and hurriedly spewed his usual protests and denials. Once they'd all calmed down Asuma began talking about the exams.  
"I'd be perfectly happy to let you take the exams this year, I mean if I thought you were ready last year then I have no doubt whatsoever now." He began, but there was a slightly apologetic undertone that Ino wasn't liking, "…but, the exams require teams of three; and Shikamaru already passed." The Jounin explained. Ino felt crushed; she had been counting on the chunin exams as a bolster. If she couldn't take them then…  
"Asuma-sensei please!" she pleaded, "We have to find a third team mate, surely there's someone available?"  
"Well I can tell you that all members of Team Eight are entering, so that rules them out. And I don't see Gai's team sitting out" Asuma stated remorsefully.

Ino's head was spinning. She _had_ to take part in the Chunin exams, she couldn't afford not to. It wasn't just her pride as a ninja anymore; it was her heart on the line. Surely there was _someone_ available to help. Ino thought for a moment, once she could. Asuma had said that two other teams were entering… but weren't there four teams? Ino counted them off: team Asuma, team Kurenai, team Gai and team Kakashi. Ino shook her head, team Kakashi was out of the question, what with Naruto away training, and Sasuke leaving the village….

"Oh no…" Ino said despairingly, burying her hands in her face as she realised who her only hope was.

_Author's Note: This is the last chapter I had written before my long period of absence, I will try and get the next chapter written within the next week. Apologies to my current readers for making you wait ^_^;_


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five - Was A Friend, Is A Rival, Will Be A Teammate

Ino grumbled as she trudged grimly by Asuma's side. This day had gone from great to abysmal in the space of twenty seconds. But if this was what it would take to realise her goal, then surely it was worth the sacrifice. Ino kept repeating this to herself as the team moved through Konoha. Soon they came to the village library. Asuma stamped out his cigarette as they entered. This was as good a place as any to look for him. The team entered and sure enough, standing by the counter, cool and collected as always...

"What! No word! What on earth is Jiraiya DOING!?" Kakashi exclaimed, looking rather crestfallen... to say the least. Asuma chuckled quietly; same old Kakashi. The white haired Jounin spotted them and swiftly returned to his normal demeanour. He greeted them heartily and accompanied them outside.

"Well I know you weren't in there book shopping, Asuma, did you want me for something?" he asked smoothly, glancing at Ino and Chouji. He seemed to understand what was going on, so when Asuma answered "in a manner of speaking" they turned and began to head for the centre of the village. Ino still couldn't believe this was happening. Kakashi leaned towards Asuma;  
"Are you sure about this? I mean you can't just throw people together and call it a team, they need to be able to work well together, rivalry slows the process... trust me I should know". He had sudden flashbacks to Sasuke and Naruto constantly trying to outdo each other, what a pain.

"Oh I think they'll be fine" Asuma replied, grinning as he lit a fresh cigarette, "Chouji too lazy to hold a grudge and Ino hasn't tried to kill anyone yet, I think maybe she's outgrown her stubbornness"  
Kakashi sighed. It wasn't just Ino he was worried about; after all it takes two to tango, and the same applies to rivalries. Regardless they continued until they reached the Konoha Hospital. Ino sighed as they pushed through the double doors, calming herself down. She didn't know what it was, but the clean air of a hospital always made her feel calmer.

A few corridors later they were knocking on a door. Their first response was a bedpan crashing through almost hitting Asuma in the face, followed by a loud protest.  
"Whatever it is it can wait! we need absolutely perfect concentration!" came the voice of the Hokage. Tsunade had always suffered from a bad temper, violent tendencies and gambling problems, so this was pretty standard. Peering through the hole in the door, Ino saw the Hokage supporting a young ANBU ninja's head while across the bed her aide was focusing on regulating their chakra to work on healing what looked like a rather serious wound.

A few minutes later though, it appeared as if it went well because both medical ninja let out a sigh of relief and got up to walk to the door. Tsunade smiled when she saw who it was through the door,  
"Kakashi, what brings you here?" she asked with a friendly tone.  
"Well I need to talk to Sakura about the Chunin exams" he replied. Tsunade looked between Kakashi and Asuma and his team with a brief look of confusion. Then it seemed to dawn on her.  
"Oh right, I see" she said hurriedly, "Well now that you mention it I really should get back to sorting the paperwork for those exams, I'll see you all later". She clearly didn't want to be around to see this.

Tsunade's pink haired aide had been listening, and had a look of confusion almost identical to the Hokage's.  
"Kakashi-sensei, I didn't think I'd be able to take part in the exams this year" Sakura said questioningly, "Isn't it three man teams like last year?"  
Kakashi fidgeted with his mask slightly, then suggested they all go to the training grounds to spar for a bit. In truth he wanted Sakura as far from destructible buildings and injured patients as possible.

Sakura didn't look to be in the best mood when they arrived. Clearly she had worked it out but was just waiting for the poor victim who dared to voice it. Kakashi and Asuma exchanged exasperated looks. Just as they turned to their teams...  
"Sakura! Please join our team for the chunin exams!"  
The two Jounin turned in surprise, Chouji dropped his barbeque flavoured snacks and Sakura was completely staggered. She had been ready to have an all out, no holds barred, rage-fuelled battle with that spoilt bimbo; she certainly hadn't expected to hear the request from her. Ino was standing, hands clasped together, eyes screwed up in a combination of pleading and self-restraint. She didn't know what she would do if Sakura refused.

Sakura looked across at her former best friend. She had never seen her like this... begging... rather than make her feel smug and superior, as she had often predicted it would, it made her feel... pity... and curiousity. She walked over to the blonde, who had opened her eyes, their blue depths scorched with a fire Sakura recognized, but she couldn't think where from...  
"You were never suited to a ninja lifestyle, you said so yourself one time at the academy," Sakura began, "So before I agree to join, I want to hear what's got you so determined to take the Chunin exams that you'll personally ask me for help?"  
Ino's expression switched from determined, to surprised, to calm in the matter of moments. She looked Sakura dead in the eye and replied.  
"I'm through with the act"  
It was all she said, the three men exchanged confused looks, but Sakura understood perfectly. Ino's feelings for Sasuke had always seemed hollow. It seemed that she'd finally let go of her ridiculous pride. Sakura smiled.  
"Alright Ino, I'll join your team, but we're going to be training harder than you have ever even thought possible!"  
Ino's eyes lit up, she dropped to her knees and laughed with glee, tears of joy flowing freely down her cheeks.

Asuma and Kakashi breathed simultaneous sighs of relief. That could have gone a lot worse. Chouji had stopped paying attention long ago to mourn the loss of his food. Ino leapt to her feet and pointed with vigour.  
"Right! Then we'll begin immediately!" she exclaimed, turning to the rest of them, "Chouji! That means you too!"  
Ino laughed as Chouji groaned in objection. She couldn't explain it. But she felt really happy. Happier than she had felt in years, and she decided to let this fuel her ambition and push her to greater heights.

Sakura laughed with her old friend. It was strange; she had been the one to end their friendship long ago, but she felt that it was Ino's duty to end the rivalry it had created. After all, it had all been due to her lie. But Sakura forgave her. However she would keep her promise and work the little piglet off her ponytail in preparation for the Chunin exams. Master Tsunade hadn't let up on Sakura even the slightest, so these Team Ten members were getting the same degree of mercy.

Kakashi turned to leave. He'd not really been needed, it seemed. Asuma began to light another cigarette as he commented.

"Some things never change, do they?" he chuckled.  
"True; they are as good friends as ever" Kakashi responded in his cool tone.  
"Indeed, but it's good to see they aren't trying to deny it any more".  
Kakashi laughed quietly. He wasn't as convinced that everything was quite settled yet. After all, you can't just throw three people together and call it a team. They would be the underdogs this year. "But then again..." Kakashi thought, "It wouldn't be the first time I was surprised...". He remembered two students of his, rivals through and through, yet still able to silently work together to pull off a tactic that even caught a Jounin off guard.

This years Chunin Exams were going to be very interesting...

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
_Author's Notes: Hi all, first of all I'd like to apologize for some atrocious grammar and spelling errors in previous chapters (for example Ino "burying her hands in her face" last chapter, dear oh dear) and hope you understand that this is a result of me rushing slightly, as well as using WordPad which has no spellcheck. Secondly I am going to start giving little teasers for the next chapters, including a tiny snippet._

Teaser: Anyway, next chapter I plan to bring in somethings old, somethings new, something borrowed and something blue. Cheesy hint? maybe, but let's just say some of these "things" will be as busy as Team 10.2

Snippet:  
He folded is arms and gazed off to the side, with the slightest of worried looks in his eye,  
"I just thought I should warn you; my cousin is entering this year... and he's possibly more skilled than my dad".


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six - The Final Stretch! Road to the Exams!

Ino's Training:

_Open up the night._

_Led by just a feeling._

Ino panted as she leapt between trees and across branches. With a flick of her wrist she dislodged two scrolls from her bandages. Catching them she turned in mid-jump to summon and hurl a scattering of small bombs at her assailant. As freakishly strong as she may be, no one is immune to sleeping poison. Once they had fallen then Ino would be able to catch her breath for the first time in several hours.

Or at least that's what she had thought...

Barely a moment after her bombs exploded into clouds of green mist, Ino felt as though a comet had smashed into her face. She heard her jaw crack just before the impact of the attack caused her to fall to the ground, unconscious. _  
_

_All around is light._

_Everything is healing._

When Ino opened her eyes all she saw was white. She'd really been knocked for a loop. While her eyes were adjusting and recovering se thought back. The sleeping poison hadn't worked; but how? It was night so her opponent couldn't possibly have seen the bombs. Perhaps they had expected it? That would make sense, Ino thought. Besides, the gas didn't have that wide a range, they would have passed through it in seconds, if they had the presence of mind to hold their breath then it was child's play, and Ino had placed too much faith in it.

Her eyes focused and she saw Sakura kneeling over her, healing her face, which felt slightly swollen and numb. She would be sure to repay Madam Forehead for that one later. For now she lay there, letting her new teammate heal her injuries.

_No more fate _

_and no more mystery._

_Even as time falls away_

_I live my days _

_every moment and it's memory,_

_not only to survive: to die alive._

The next morning, Ino stood opposite Sakura again. She tied her hair back as she prepared to fight her again. There was less than two months untill the chunin exams. Sakura had set out a training plan: They would spar until either Ino won, or they reached the last month leading up to the exams. Then for the remaining month the three of them would work on teamwork. Ino briefly wondered how Chouji's training was going. She didn't have time to dwell on it, as Asuma struck the gong to begin their bout.

Their match lasted a bit longer this time, taking over three hours. Ino had spent their training sessions together testing her solitary progress; she had almost caught up to Sakura, after training night and day, only stopping for sleep and one meal a day. She didn't mind, she was used to a limited diet. And if this was what it took, then so be it.

As she leapt around, dodging her adversary's fierce taijutsu, she regulated her strength with as much precision as she could, occasionally increasing her pace to set traps. She wouldn't stand a chance if she got in close, unless she could create an opening.

Ino heard a small explosion and immediately turned on the ball of her foot to launch into an attack. Her reward however was Sakura appeariing from her left and catching her arms, twisting it back behind her, holding a kunai in her other and pointing it at the base of Ino's spine. The explosion had been set of intentionally, Ino could see now the kunai stuck in the tree where her explosive tag had been. And now she was in an inescapable situation.

"Victory: Haruno, Sakura"

_Overwhelming love,_

_heaven's just a feeling._

_Singing in my blood_

_keeping me from kneeling._

_  
_The two kunoichi sat silently next to each other, cross-legged. They were resting an restoring their chakra in preparation for their next round. Ino focused her thoughts on Sakura; were there any patterns to her attacks? her movements? No. She wouldn't be that careless. Her specialty lies in close ranged combat, so fighting hand-to-hand like the last exams was completely out of the question.

She wasn't quite sure how she would beat her, but she knew she had to. If she couldn't even beat Sakura then it was as good as falling at the first hurdle; there would be little point in even taking the exams. But not taking the exams was not an option. Ino was fighting for much more than a rank, and it was this that kept her going.

The two ninja stood for another fight._  
_

_No more fate_

_and no more mystery._

_Even as time falls away_

_I live my days _

_every moment and it's memory,_

_not only to survive: to die alive._

Their match started as usual, with Sakura on the offensive. Ino dashed through the forest again, being sure not to follow a previous path. She was constantly trying to think between dodging those crazy punches. She suddenly had an idea. It wouldn't win her the fight but it would buy her a small amount of time.

Leading the chase Ino passed through the clearing three or four times. Sakura started to suspect something; Ino had stuck strictly to the cover of the trees before now. But she couldn't afford to lose track of her target. She followed the blonde back into the forest, matching her steps perfectly. Suddenly Ino dropped to the ground, so Sakura followed.

As soon as she landed she found that she was still falling. There was a thick cloud of smoke around her. When she landed she looked up; she was in a pit about thirty feet deep! How had this happened? Had Ino dug the hole prior to today's training? No. She would have used it in the first fight. Sakura became aware that she could feel the ground beneath her feet. The soles of her sandals appeared to have burned off.

Ino crouched in a nearby tree, watching the pit as she scrawled symbols along a scroll hurriedly. Finally one of her traps had been effective. She had discreetly snatched handfuls of grass while she passed through the clearing, and used them to cover an explosive tag. She had then placed it under her foot as she leapt to the ground, placing it exactly where she landed. Sakura had followed as predicted and set it off when she landed on it.

Ino wound up her new scroll, placed it in her wrist bandage and reached for her side pouch. The scroll was a backup, in case Sakura escaped this. She removed two senbon, each with a small container of sleeping gas attached. Leaping out across the pit, Ino hurled the senbon straight down towards Sakura, who naturally dodged. The impact of the needles striking the earth set off the gas.

Sakura flinched, she was in trouble. The pit was too wide to simply wall jump to the top, which meant she would have to run up the side; which took more chakra than she'd like to waste. Regardless she dashed up the side, carefully governing her chakra to fit around the contours of the earth. She managed to escape the green cloud and immediately began searching for Ino.

Ino smiled. She had accomplished her goal perfectly. Sakura's strength lay in being able to find her opponent to beat the living daylights out of them. She rolled out her scroll, securing it between two trees. Now she just had to wait.

Sakura darted through the forest in the direction she had seen Ino heading from the pit, it was the only lead she had. Suddenly she stopped as she spotted a scroll, rolled out fully. This was surely a trap of some kind. Just as she was about to try and read the scroll, Ino leapt out along it, summoning as she went. Sakura leapt forward, determined to stop her before whatever she was planning came to fruition. She dodged two of whatever Ino threw and aimed a punch for her gut.

Her fist connected with wood. Splinters dug into her knuckles. Substitution? She turned to see Ino and a clone standing in front of two scrolls, about fifteen feet apart. Sakura realised suddenly what she'd dodged earlier. In her hasty attempt to negate Ino's trap, she had walked right into it. Both Inos placed their hands on their respective scrolls.

Ino grinned as her clone summoned a hailstorm of senbon. Each one carrying a smoke bomb. Visibility was zero everywhere within a forty foot radius of Sakura's position. At the same time, Ino herself launched several senbon containing a paralysis agent towards Sakura. Even if the senbon missed, there was little chance that Sakura could get out of range.

When the smoke cleared, Sakura was indeed incapacitated. She lay on the forest floor, grinning but unmoving. The paralysis would wear off within half an hour, it wasn't strong. Ino collapsed on the ground next to her. She had finally won. The two of them laughed together. Neither of them were listening when Asuma appeared nearby and annouced:

"Victory: Yamanaka, Ino"

Ino had done it. She was ready to move on with her training. She had learned so much, discovered and dealt with flaws in her battle plans. It was all for him. She would either pass the Chunin Exams or die trying. And even if that were the case, she'd die smiling, die knowing she tried, die happy...

_Die Alive._

Chouji's Training:  


"If you cannot do five hundred press-ups then we will swim five hundred widths!"

Chouji huffed and panted heavily as he struggled to lift his bulky frame from the ground. He still didn't get what had happened. Tenten had randomly showed up at his door and dragged him out here saying something about "helping Ino". It seemed that Gai-sensei had agreed to help with his training at Tenten's request. Neji had objected heavily and stormed off, Tenten had left to go calm him down, which left Chouji with...

"Sensei! Shall I train with extra weight today?!" Lee called out while expertly doing pushups opposite Chouji. He had agreed to help with motivation. After all, no one in the village drove themselves harder than Konoha's Handsome Green Devil's; Rock Lee and Might Gai. Lee found it hard to understand their temporary training partner; he occasionally got bursts of determination, but they were short-lived, as he despaired easily.

Chouji fell after thirty seven press-ups. Groaning in fatigue and irritation he lifted his head slightly so he could address his torturers.  
"What's the point? I can't work out to the same extent as you guys..." he complained, "Besides, even if I could what would be the point? I'm genetically chubby, even if I lost a bit of weight...". He always felt like this, like losing weight or training like this was pointless. It made no difference. Just as he stood up-

"DYNAMIC ENTRY!!"

Chouji felt himself fly through the air and collide with a tree. Looking up he saw Gai-sensei standing over him, with Lee standing nearby looking shocked. Chouji felt his blood boil. Gai pointed down at him

"Chouji Akimichi; why do you think you are here, training with Lee?" he asked in a serious tone.

"To get in shape for the Chunin exams?" Chouji offered, this guy was seriously scary when he was in a temper.

"Wrong!" Gai exclaimed, "You are here because you NEED to be here". Chouji clearly didn't understand so Gai continued, "Do you honestly believe that I'd expect you to be up to Lee's standards of training in a matter of months? It took him YEARS to reach his level! You are here because you lack self-confidence, you constantly think 'I can't' when a ninja needs to think 'I can!'. Now tell me; Why do you think you can't?"

Chouji stood up angrily, how dare he tell him what he should think?! It wasn't a case of him thinking he can't it's because he couldn't.  
"Because I'm just an oversized waste of space! I can't do anything right! I was the fastest elimination in last years round! I'm just a big, chubby-"  
This was as far as he got before Gai kicked him back to the riverbank where they had been training.

"Let me ask you something" The Jounin insisted, "Do you consider your father to be a waste of space? to big and chubby to be of any use?". Chouji shook his head, he was in too much pain to answer. "Well I'll have you know he was almost exactly like you at his age! The only difference is he never saw his physical condition as an obstacle. He learned to use it to his advantage! in fact your clan's signature techniques, which you've been using since day one, are all heavy hitting moves built on being bigger than average! It is not your body which stands in your way, but your mind" Couji stood up and began dusting himself off, determination building in his face. "Now tell me; Chouji, of the Akimichi clan, can you swim five hundred widths of this river?" 

Chouji raised his head, his hands balled into fists. He wasn't going to be weak anymore; the others were counting on him. Ino seemed desperate to pass the chunin exams and she'd need his help. He couldn't let his teammate... his friend... down. With unexpected vigour he raised his head and screamed.  
"YES! GAI-SENSEI!"

"That's all i wanted to hear; now get to it!"

****One Month Until The Exams****

Ino awoke to a sunlit bedroom. Yawning she shuffled through to the bathroom for her morning shower. Her thoughts danced between her training with Sakura, Shikamaru, how Chouji must hate her for sending him to Gai to train, Shikamaru, how the exams were so close, Shikamaru, the teamwork training that she was going to start today and, of course, Shikamaru.

She turned the temperature down to near freezing for a few seconds and scolded herself. She needed to learn to stay focused. Otherwise she'd make mistakes, it had happened before. Before long she was packing a few more scrolls into her belt before leaving for the training ground. She didn't pay much attention as she went. The journey only took her about ten minutes.

She arrived to find Asuma and Sakura waiting. They seemed to be discussing something, so Ino didn't interrupt. She sat up on top of one of the training posts. She wondered if Chouji would even show up today, it would be the first time she'd deen him in about two months. Shortly, the other two noticed and greeted her. Just as they were beginning to wonder if Gai had seriously injured him, Chouji showed up.

"Wow! Chouji have you lost weight?" Ino exclaimed, running over and hugging her teammate. He certainly looked healthier, and he'd lost that look of complete uncaring that used to annoy Ino. Chouji explained that he hadn't lost a lot weight, just toned some of it into muscle. He'd also changed hisstyle of clothing, and was sporting a plain red headband in lieu of his former headgear. He looked more like a slightly smaller version of his father now.

Asuma cleared his throat to get their attention. The three Gennin gathered around him, a fiery determination in their eyes. They were mentally ready for the exams. Asuma wondered how long that would last.

"I don't need to tell you the details of the Chunin Selection Exams, they are for the most part the same each year, so you pretty much know what to expect... however..." he could physically feel the tension rise in the three of them, "The first exam changes each time, so that previous examinees are tested to the same extent as newcomers" The fire in their eyes flickered slightly; clearly they were remembering the stress Ibiki Morino's exam had caused them. "Over the next month the competitors from other nations will be arriving, so keep an eye out for familiar faces." There wasn't much reaction for this, other than Ino's eye lip twitching slightly. Asuma thought nothing of it. "Now, there's someone else who wanted to talk to you, Chouji and Ino especially".

At that moment, Shikamaru appeared in a cloud of smoke. He was wearing is usual fed up expression. Ino's heart skipped a beat or three. She managed to keep herself in check though, as Shikamaru greeted them.  
"I wanted to come wish you luck in the exams" he began, "And to thank Sakura for taking my place" he seemed a tad distracted. "And, I know as a Chunin who is... involved... with the exams, I probably shouldn't give details on any of the competition..." his face turned thoughtful for a minute, "But I guess if it were just me engaging in conversation about my family..."  
"Oh just spit it out Shikamaru!" Sakura scolded light-heartedly.  
He folded is arms and gazed off to the side, with the slightest of worried looks in his eye,  
"I just thought I should warn you; my cousin is entering this year... and he's possibly more skilled than my dad".

The rest of the team stood in shock. They remembered seeing Shikaku Nara fighting alongside Chouza and Inoichi during an incident with a clan of ninja renegades not long ago. He was no amateur. The thought that someone in the exams could be more skilled at the Nara's jutsu was frightening at the least.

"So it seems since last time, more team leaders are placing faith in rookie Gennin" Asuma commented, remembering when he, Kurenai and Kakashi had all put their students forward regardless of their limited experience. This was going to be intriguing.

Ino walked through Konoha, thinking about Shikamaru's warning. Was his cousin really so strong that even Shikamaru worried for them? She guessed it must be the case; Shikamaru never did anything without reason, and warnings from him were worth taking under advisement. Whilst she was thinking she wasn't paying attention and almost walked into someone.  
"Hey! Watch where you're going"

Ino froze. She knew that voice. Perhaps it was stupid of her, but she knew that as the voice of her rival. She turned to face them and sure enough, standing there with her oversized fan and ridiculous four-bunch hairstyle.  
"Good day to you too, Temari" Ino replied waspishly. Temari tilted her head slightly.  
"I'm sorry, have we met?" she asked looking genuinely confused. Then suddenly, "Oh yes that's right, you're one of _his_ teammates, right?" she added with a smirk.  
"Yes, I do happen to be a teammate of the boy whom you lost to so spectacularly at the last exams" Ino retorted, a bit venomously.  
"I think the records will tell you I won, little girl. But then you got an excellent view, after all you didn't make it to the final round, did you?" The sand kunoichi returned sharply.  
Ino's frustration was elevating faster than she cared for. She couldn't lose her temper and start a fight in the streets like this.

Thankfully it didn't come to that. A hand appeared on each of Temari's shoulders, attached to her teammates.  
"C'mon Temari, let's not make a scene, we're already under scrutiny for last time" Kankouro explained exasperatedly. Temari still looked ready to pick a fight. But that attitude didn't last much longer,  
"Temari... drop it..." came an irritated sounding voice. Gaara tightened his rip on his sister's shoulder. She calmed down quickly. As they walked away she turned back to Ino.  
"See you in the forest... Princess"

****Chunin Exams Registration Hall****

  
It was finally time. The Chunin Exams began today. As the team made their way to room three-hundred and one, each of them was focusing on their tactics, and trying to imagine what the first exam would entail. The exams were being held in Konoha again, as their previous term as host had been disrupted through no fault of their own.

When they reached the room they found that they were only the third team there, Team Eight were standing in the back corner chatting; Hinata gave Ino a wave as she entered, which Ino returned happily. Across the other side of the room, Gai's team were busying themselves. Tenten was checking her scrolls, Neji looked like he was concentrating on something, and Lee was supporting himself on the handle of a kunai with his index finger, working on his balance.

It wasn't long before more teams started showing up. When Gaara and his team entered, Temari made a point of ignoring Ino's scorching glare. After a little while Sakura gasped and ran towards the registry bench.  
"Manami?" she asked a young girl with short dark blue hair, "Is that you?"  
The girl turned around and her face lit up.  
"Sakura-sama!" she chimed, "Oh my goodness, I haven't seen you in ages!"  
Ino and Chouji walked over to the two of them, who were now chatting animatedly. Sakura explained that Manami was her uncle's stepdaughter.  
"So where are your teammates?" Sakura asked, looking around, "I'd love to meet them"

Manami darted off to find them. She swiftly returned with two boys, one of them was slouching slightly and wearing a dark green hoodie and square shades. He reminded Ino of someone but she couldn't quite think who. The other boy was tall for his age, and had piercing blue eyes and long brown hair tied back in a ponytail.  
"This is Rikuto Aburame" She introduced, indicating the hooded boy, who simply nodded.  
"Oh!" Chouji exclaimed, "Are you by any chances related to Shino Aburame?"  
The boy nodded in reply, "...second cousin".  
He seemed the quiet type, typical of the Aburame clan. They turned to the other boy.

"Katsurou Nara" he introduced, bowing politely to them, "I think you know my cousin, Shikamaru?" he continued, smiling.  
The three of them froze briefly; _This_ was the cousin Shikamaru had warned them about? He didn't look all that threatening. But then again, there was no mistaking it, he definitely bore some similarity to the Naras. They snapped out of it quickly enough not to arouse suspiscion as they replied.  
"I look forward to taking the exams with you" he added in a friendly tone, "Come, Manami, Rikuto, They will be starting soon"  
The young team walked away. Sure enough, Izumo and Kotetsu showed up to lead the examinees to their first exam. As teams filed out, Ino couldn't help but notice that Temari was getting heated looks from more than just herself, there was a grass ninja eyeing her suspisciously, and a waterfall ninja who looked livid when she walked past.

They followed the crowd and were seated. After a few more minutes of chatting between teammates and colleagues one of the instructors rapped the front desk with his knuckles for attention.  
"Please be seated and silent for the explanation of the first exam, your proctor should be here any second now"  
No sooner had he said it, than the door opened. And upon seeing who had walked in, several pairs of eyes widened.

This was a turn for the unexpected...

  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
_Author's Notes: Hi all, well the answers to the teaser were as follows_

Old - Favourites such as Gaara and Rock Lee  
New - Characters... and plenty of them  
Borrowed - "Die Alive" by Tarja Turunen from the Album "My Winter Storm" (Neccessary Disclaimer Thing: I don't own the rights to this song... dur...)  
Blue - Chouji *sympathy from the studio audience*

This chapter wound up being far longer than my previous chapters. I didn't expect this. So we'll call this a feature-length Pre-Chunin Exams Special, because I doubt I'll write this much for a chapter ever again XD Also I don't know if I did the songfic type justice in the first part, so reviews would be awesome, even if you've reviewed before, it helps me learn what I can and can't do well.

Thanks to all, I will try and get cracking on with the next chapter.

Teaser: Next Chapter will reveal some of the proctors, what will the first exam be? who is this surprise proctor? and what the heck is up with all these random family members? find out next time... mostly...

Snippet:  
She folded her arms behind her head  
"Oh snap, I must be early again..."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven - Subterranean Subterfuge

The silence in the room hit like a freight train. Everyone actually felt the ripple of shock as the first Proctor entered; but none more than Ino.  
"No way..." she whimpered to herself as the Proctor sighed and walked over to the chalkboard. Her eyes followed him but her mind couldn't keep up, she thought she had prepared herself for anything in these exams, but this was... there was no way to describe how unreal this was. Lazily lifting a piece of chalk he scratched his name down in his untidy scrawl.

"Shikamaru Nara, Proctor for the First Chunin Exam"

The silence broke into hardly concealed conferring and muttering. Taking a moment to look around, Ino noticed that all her comrades were just as surprised as she was. Chouji and Sakura looked just as stunned as she felt. Neji and Shino maintained their usual composure, but paying enough attention, one could see telltale hints of surprise. Kiba's face was priceless, he looked like he might pass out. Lee just looked incredibly eager, no surprise there. Ino's eyes sweeped across the room and met Tenten's. The older kunoichi, who had at first seemed surprised, giggled slightly and winked at her friend knowingly. As she was turning back, Ino noticed Hinata smiling, but wether she was smiling at Ino wasn't clear.

The muttering around Ino became clearer as reality began to sink back in. People were exchanging comments and questions left and right, informing comrades that Shikamaru was the only graduate from last years exams. Eventually one Cloud Village ninja slammed his palms on the desk and stood up suddenly.  
"This is ridiculous! How can we be expected to accept a Proctor who hasn't even been a chunin for a full year? I thought Jounin were chosen for this role!"  
Shikamaru turned to face the enraged ninja.  
"No one is making you accept me" he stated, gesturing to the door, "Leave".  
The ninja shook agitatedly, glaring angrily at Shikamaru, his teammates watching on worriedly. Soon he stopped and let his arms fall by his side.  
"Very well, good luck, Tsuko, Shin... I hope you do well in this farce, but I for one will NOT be made a fool of, goodbye!"  
As he was walking towards the door, all eyes following him, Shikamaru folded his arms.  
"You two, his teammates... Leave"  
The exiting ninja halted in the doorway and suddenly spun around to face Shikamaru. His eyes wide with anger. The whole room tensed up, and the two seated Cloud Ninja looked stunned. The upstart marched over to Shikamaru, raising his fist.  
"What?! Why do _they_ have to leave? It's _me _who has the issue" he spat, grabbing Shikamaru by the collar. Shikamaru knocked his hand away and groaned in agitation.  
"The rules of the exams are clear; teams of three participate in the first exam, no more, no less. If one can't participate then the others are inelligible. I don't make the rules, I just make sure they are kept. I never asked to be the proctor, personally I can't think of a more bothersome chore, but I was selected, if you have a problem with that then take it up with the council. Now either take a seat, or take your teammates and leave"

A few minutes later the Cloud ninja had settled down enough to rejoin his teammates and the rest of the room had calmed down to a dull roar. Ino sat staring with rapt attention, her heart had finally stopped pounding so loud that she could focus; if Shikamaru had designed the first exam then they were bound to be in for a tough ride. Shikamaru rapped on the chalkboard to gather attention. Clearing his throat he began:

"As most of you already know, these Chunin Selection Exams are held every six months in a village decided by the allied ninja villages. As some of you will remember, the exams were held here in Konoha six months ago, but were disrupted. As a result, the ninja alliance decided to allow Konoha to host the exams once again, as both a demonstration of our determination and strength as a community able to rebuild and move on, and as an extension of forgiveness of past... mistakes..."  
Even Shikamaru wasn't able to avoid letting his eyes flit across to the sand ninja at this point, "...you have all been selected by your respective villages to be tested for Promotion, as such you are expected to represent your village with pride and..."  
he looked at the previously outspoken Cloud ninja pointedly,  
"... dignity... during your stay here. No doubt you've already been told all about how these exams are designed to promote unity and peace between the different ninja countries, so I won't bore you with those details."

Shikamaru paused and looked out across the room full of ninja. They had the same range of expression he remembered from when he sat in this room; determination, excitement, calm confidence, concern, anxiety. He began to make estimations on who would make it through his test. That Cloud ninja would probably make it; his teammates looked smart enough to keep him in line. He imagined that Kiba would struggle... at first at any rate. He was certain Neji's team would make it without any problems. His eyes fell on the front row, where Ino, Sakura and Chouji were sitting. He wasn't entirely sure how they would fare. It was going to be interesting to say the least.

"Well I've talked long enough about things that I don't even think matter. So now I'll explain the exams. First exam, supervised by myself, will test several aspects of you as an individual ninja as well as your team ethics and integration. There will be nothing strenuously physical involved; that's for the next two exams. But I wouldn't want to deny the second Proctor the right to explain their own exam."

Ino was listening carefully, analyzing every word, as she knew the rest of her team and former classmates were. There was no doubt that they would need to focus clearly on what the test entailed. She remembered last years gruelling task. Many ninja gave up under sheer mental pressure, they couldn't take it. In fact she herself had been ready to give up, if it weren't for keeping up appearances and trying to outdo Sakura and... because of _his _actions. Yes, if it weren't for that knucklehead, a lot more people would have given up... who'd have thought.

"Alright listen up!" Shikamaru announced, "I'm only going to explain this once. You will notice that the other examiners are holding cards with a number. There is a number for each team. When I have finished explaining I will announce the numbers assigned to each team. You and your team are to go with your examiner who will take you to the actual stage of the first exam"

The room burst into chatter once more. So they weren't going to be taking the test in this examination room? This was unexpected. Ino sat looking at Shikamaru's face, but the young Proctor wasn't giving anything away.

"Your examiner will take you to a door with your teams number on it. Whilst there your examiner will give you one last chance to withdraw from the first exam. Once you enter that room the only way out is to fail the exam. And if you fail the exam you will be inelligable for promotion for a full two years." he paused to allow another brief outburst of shock from the applicants, he ignored loud protests, "I shall mention that until you are in that room you are welcome to leave at any moment. the door is right there, you'll be free to re-apply in six months, as will your teammates. Now the only instructions you need to know for now is: Do not open the box, or you will fail."

Team Ten-point-Two, as they'd named themselves, drowned out the surrounding noise as they all focused on what Shikamaru had said. Sakura noted that Shikamaru hadn't said that the instruction regarding the box was the _only_ instruction they would receive. Just that it was the only one for now. Chouji took note of how simple the instruction was, and how there had to be more too it than that. Ino took a note of the little half smile Shikamaru let slip, the little half smile that always accompanied his mind settling on the final detail of a plan. The second she saw that smile, she knew Asuma had just lost the game of Shogi. So what did he have in store? Ino couldn't wait to see.

She turned to take another look around the room. Most teams had huddled together and were discussing the information that they had just received. One or two teams excused themselves quietly, withdrawing from the exams at the prospect of two years doing Genin grunt work. Ino noticed that the young leaf genin they had met earlier, Sakura's cousin or whatever, and her team, looked thoroughly unfazed by the exams description. In fact, the young Nara was sitting back, his arms folded, eyes closed, legs crossed on the desk... smiling... always smiling. It was unnerving. Ino had gotten the impression that he was well-mannered and friendly from their brief encounter, but something about him just made her uneasy. Suddenly she heard Shikamaru clear his throat as he began announcing team numbers.

* * * * Approximately One Hour Later * * * *

Ino, Sakura and Chouji stopped next to their examiner. They had followed him through the forest, past the training grounds to what appeared to be a random part of the forest. Turning to them he spoke.

"Team Seventeen; Yamanaka, Ino. Haruno, Sakura and Akimichi, Chouji. This is the final turning point. I am instructed to ask you now, for the final time. Do you wish to withdraw from the Chunin Exams, and remain elligible to re-apply in six months?" he asked, keeping an emotionless face. The three of them turned to look at each other, silently confirming their decision. They shook their heads firmly.  
"Very well" the ninja responded. He then turned to a tree, performed several hand seals, and pressed his palm against the trunk. Ino briefly noticed a light blue "17" glow on the trunk before it folded away to reveal a sloping staircase leading to a door. "Please proceed, and good luck". The three of them bowed gratefully to the examiner and proceeded. Ino's hand shook slightly as she turned the handle on the door.

  
Inside the room was a table, three cushions lay on the floor around it. On the table itself, there sat an ornate chest with a small clasp. The three of them sat down cautiously. So this was the box they weren't supposed to open... so what was the test? Ino's eyes ran over every tiny detail of the box; it's design, the shape, the size, the clasp, the handles on the side. But nothing seemed in the least bit suspicious. Then she spotted something unusual.  
"Is that a piece of paper under the corner, Sakura?" she asked, pointing to the corner nearest her fellow kunoichi.  
Sakura blinked in confusion before lowering her head to look. Sure enough, a tiny sliver of white could be seen against the table. Sakura carefully retrieved the notice, reading it aloud to her team.

_"Your mission is to guard this box  
Your self-restraint and discipline it's only locks  
But how long will your resolve stand_

_When the risk of Death is at hand?"_

No sooner had Sakura finished reading the note, than a section of the wall near Chouji slid open, revealing an hourglass and another note. Chouji trembled as he read.

_"A new development in the case  
Against time you begin the race  
When the sands have ran dry  
All within this room shall die"_

Ino felt her lungs tighten. What did it mean they would die? What was the meaning of this test? She turned to look at her teammates; Sakura looked sick, Chouji looked frightened. Ino briefly wondered how she looked right now. Standing up she walked over and inspected the hourglass. It was secured in place, so it couldn't be tampered with. Judging from the rate the sand was falling Ino guessed they had an hour to figure the test out. Walking back to the table she tried to keep fear out of her face.

This was madness...

"What the HELL!" Kiba growled angrily as he read the note. He clenched his fists as he turned away, "Man... I knew Shikamaru was weird.. but homicidal?". Akamaru whimpered quietly from beneath the table. Hinata absent-mindedly petted him as she tried to think. There had to be a trick to this. Looking across the room at Shino, she noticed he was sitting as calmly as normal. Kiba was punching the wall in frustration, but Shino remained unchanged by the current developments.

Perhaps he knew...

"Ah! I see! A test of our discipline! We must be willing to give our lives for the sake of our villages honour!" Lee exclaimed, folding his arms and nodding. Neji chuckled audibly.  
"Not quite" he commented. Tenten's gaze drifted between her two teammates. She wasn't worried, they had the genius, Neji Hyuga, on their team. She was more concerned with Ino's safety. They didn't have their genius with them this time.

She had to stay strong...

The three sand ninja sat silently around the table, watching the box with no expression whatsoever. They already knew what had to be done for this exam. Gaara had first thought of tampering with the sand in the hourglass to give them more time. But before he could even walk over to the wall his sister laughed.  
"You should both have spotted the flaw in this notice, and you call yourself Suna ninjas" she teased, leaning her fan against the wall and making herself comfortable.

Checkmate, Nara...

Rikuto felt his temple pounding. Manami hadn't stopped screaming hysterically for almost ten minutes now. glancing over his shades he saw that his other teammate was pouring tea from a thermos. This clearly didn't sit well with Manami, whose volume lowered just enough for them to make out a few words.  
"TEA!!!!... NOW!?!?... DANGER!!!!... TIME RUNNING OUT!!!!... HOW CAN YOU BE SO CALM!?!?"  
Katsurou laughed as the girl practically passed out from lack of breath next to him. Supporting her on his shoulder he passed her the tea.  
"Because this test is a simple case of observation and common sense. Now drink up and don't worry, we'll be fine"  
Manami clearly wasn't totally convinced, but Katsurou always had a calming effect on her. So she sat quietly and sipped the tea gingerly.

Pain in the neck, smart people...

The cloud ninja were in a state of complete anarchy. None of them could hear above each other. Eventually one of them slammed his fist down on the table, cracking it slightly. Now that he had got their attention it was time to progress.  
"Listen, this is so simple. They are _trying_ to eliminate as many people as possible. So they put us in a room, with two locked doors, and a box that they say we can't open. Then they say we will die when the hourglass runs out. They expect the smartest of the bunch to realise that the only way to escape with our lives; is by opening the box!"  
His teammates gasped in shock at his deduction. It seemed to make sense; maybe they hid the key to one of the doors inside the box!  
It wasn't long before the brash ninja who had spoken out against Shikamaru was unfastening the clasp on the front of the box.

Child's play...

"Argh I just don't GET it!" Sakura bellowed as she kicked her cushion across the room. They had been standing around doing nothing for almost half an hour now. It frustrated her that this test didn't seem to test any sort of knowledge of ninja abilities or other theory. Chouji was sweating heavily, his eyes fixated on the box on the table. Without thinking, his hand lifted, reaching slowly for the clasp. He was woken up when his fingers were cracked against the table. Ino had swung around and axe kicked his hand.  
"Chouji! We were told NOT to open that box!" the blonde ninja reprimanded, "We don't know what's in there, remember the heaven and earth scrolls from last year?"  
Chouji remembered hearing how people who had sneaked a look at their scrolls, which was forbidden, had been knocked out cold by a chunin examiner and disqualified from the exams.  
"But what if this is different? what if we're _supposed_ to open the box? Maybe there's a way to escape inside" he protested.  
"Until we know you keep your grubby paws off the box!" Ino scolded. She then turned to Sakura, who was still fuming next to the hourglass. This silence and tense atomosphere lasted a further twenty-five minutes. During that time, Ino found her eyes drawn to the box more and more frequently. Maybe Chouji had a point. If they were going to die then what was there to lose?  
Ino sighed and looked across the table at Chouji.  
"Maybe... it wouldn't hurt to take a peek..." she muttered. Sakura's head snapped up and she glared wildly at Ino, "Oh come off it Sakura!" Ino yelled, pulling the box towards her. Sakura frowned as her comrade continued her yelling, "... If we're going to die when that sand runs dry then what do we have to lose?"

Sakura's eyes widened suddenly. She turned and read swiftly through the note on the wall again, she spun back and screamed at Ino, who had begun unfastening the clasp.  
"STOP! I'VE FIGURED IT OUT!"  
Ino dropped the clasp like it had caught fire. It wasn't often Sakura sounded so sure of anything, and the sheer urgency of her tone told Ino that she was onto something. They stared at each other for a moment.  
"Don't open the box... we'll be fine" she gasped in relief, turning to look at the hourglass. Their time was nearly up.

Three... Two... One...

The three ninja jumped as there was a loud click. Seconds later their examiner entered from the second door in the room. He remained as emotionless as before as he entered the room. He walked over to the table and opened the box. Ino watched as the examiner removed a small scroll. He unravelled it and showed it's contents to the team.

_Discipline_

"Congratulations, Team Seventeen, you are elligible to proceed with the first Chunin exam"

Sakura sighed, Chouji cheered... Ino looked dumbfounded. Proceed? There was more to come? She had thought the exam over. She should have known. Shikamaru wouldn't take half measures, even if he found a job troublesome he would do it well. Suddenly Ino turned to Sakura,  
"Oh, Sakura, how did you know that we'd live?"  
Sakura smiled and laughed slightly.  
"Because we weren't dead when we entered the room"  
Chouji and Ino exchanged confused looks. They spent a few moments trying to work out what she could mean, but came up empty. Sakura walked over to the wall where the hourglass was set.  
"See here, the sand couldn't 'run dry' because it was never wet. It's so simple that we didn't consider it at first, no doubt Shikamaru expected people to miss this fact in the face of 'death' and open the box"  
Ino nodded. It made sense now. She felt quite stupid for not seeing it herself. She noted that she'd need to find some way to train her mind next time she had a chance.

The examiner motioned to the team to follow him. He led them out the door he had entered from, into a tunnel that had clearly been built recently for this exam. After walking for about five minutes they came to a small chamber, with three seperate paths leading off in different directions. Above the three paths, carved in huge letters above all three was the word "Honour". Ino was about to ask which way they were to go when the Examiner read from a clipboard.

"Left path: Yamanaka, Ino. Centre path: Akimichi Chouji. Right path: Haruno, Sakura. At the end of each path is a room, you are to enter this room and remove the tag from the wall. When all three tags are removed the exam will begin, your instructions will be given at that time. Under no circumstances are you to touch anything else in the room before the exam begins. Failure to comply with this instruction will result in a whole team failure. As you have declined withdrawal, you can only withdraw if you realise that it will result in your whole team being inelligible for promotion for two years. WIth this in mind, do you wish to continue?"

All three of them nodded without hesitation this time. Secretly, though, each of them were dreading what lay ahead. Ino was panicking; what if she wasn't smart enough to figure the next challenge out herself? Passing these exams meant more to her than anything; but she was up against a prodigy. Would she be able to take the heat?

She took a deep breath and marched off down the left path, giving an encouraging thumbs up to her team mates. She was sure they'd be alright, Chouji was Shikamaru's best friend, if anyone could work out his way of thinking it was him, and Sakura was one of the top students from their year. Ino began to feel weighed down; Their passing or failing could be determined solely on how well she managed the task.

Soon Ino arrived at her room. As she entered the first thing she noticed were the two levers on the right wall, either side of what appeared to be a giant window, but beyond it was darkness, she took a moment to squint through, but she couldn't make anything out. After giving up she removed the tag from the wall directly opposite the door she came in. Once again she noted a second door on the remaining wall.

Suddenly, there was a loud thud as part of the wall fell away where the tag had previously been. Ino took a step towards the engraved wooden notice behind the revealed panel. No sooner had she put her foot down, than she heard a rumbling from behind her. on the roof above the door there was a small pipe, from which water flowed at a rapid pace, creating a puddle on the floor. Ino looked on, confused, as the puddle swiftly grew bigger. Then a sudden realization hit her and she turned to read the notice.

_You've been chosen to judge today  
Who shall leave and who shall stay  
The lever on the left will save your friends  
But unless you choose right, your life will end_

Ino felt a chill crawl up her spine. A glint of light caught the corner of her eye. Turning to the window she screamed. She could now see clearly two empty rooms, about three metres apart, empty apart from a struggling ninja inside each one. Sakura was pounding on the door, screaming, tears streaming down her cheek, while Chouji was shoulder barging his door; a mixture of fear and frenzied determination in his eyes. Both of their rooms were also filling with water.

Ino froze in terror as she tried to comprehend the situation. Surely this couldn't be right, could it? Shikamaru wouldn't make someone choose between killing their team mates or suicide... would he? The water soaking her ankles was real enough. She began to panic. She couldn't bring herself to pull either lever. She couldn't even tear her eyes away from her struggling team mates. Sakura had abandoned her assault on the door, and was now standing, frozen, with more fear in her face than Ino ever could ever have imagined.

Her mind was racing, with her heart setting the pace. If she let them die she'd never be able to live with herself. But if she died then all effort she'd ever put into anything will have been worthless. She simply stood there, staring through the window blankly. Her hands hung limply by her sides as the water began to lap around her knees. She couldn't bring herself to move. What good was there in living if it meant leaving your friends to die? Surely self sacrifice was the right thing to do. Ino grasped the left hand lever, shaking with fear. But she faltered; it was much easier to say you choose death than it was to actually seal your own fate.

She clasped her hands around the sides of her head in frustration, tears streaming down her face. This was so cruel. How could Shikamaru do such a thing? Was this some kind of sick joke? As Ino stood there, breaking down the water began to soak through her top. Time was running out. She'd have to make a decision or they'd all die. Ino slapped herself hard and took a deep breath. She reasoned that, even if it did mean her survival, leaving Sakura and Chouji to die was simply out of the question. She stared at the left lever, building up resolve as the water sloshed around her chin.

By the time she finally moved, she had been completely submerged for at least thirty seconds. _"He wouldn't accept a murderer"_ she kept mentally repeating to herself as she gripped the lever and kicked off of the roof. The lever moaned loudly as it shifted. Through the window Ino saw Sakura and Chouji's heads burst above the lowering water level, gasping for air, but alive. Ino closed her eyes and smiled. _"Please don't forget me..."_

* * * * Later * * * *

"Is she alright"

"She passed out, probably from oxygen deprivation"

"Will she recover for the final stage?"

"I don't know"

Ino was hearing voices in her head. How strange... was this what it was like to be dead? She had never really thought about it before. She was sure she recognized one of the voices... it sounded familiar... comforting... real. She was slightly confused when she found she could open her eyes. As she did she was met with a blinding light. She felt dizzy, but after a moment the light dulled, and she could make out a blurry figure standing over her.

"Well, it looks like we've got another live one" a voice said lightly. Ino didn't recognize this one. She tried to turn her head to find that familiar voice, but it only made her dizzier. The room was starting to come into focus. Ino blinked stupidly. This was strange. "_Live one?" _she thought to herself, _"But I'm dead... aren't I?"_. She looked up again and was able to make out the face of a young woman.  
"Good morning. How are you feeling?" she asked in a friendly tone.  
"Huh?" Ino replied, the word was scratchy as it escaped her dry throat.  
"Disorientated no doubt, and I would assume thirsty" the young woman answered for her. Ino watched as she poured a glass of water. Images started flying through Ino's mind. Her focus snapped back and she sat bolt upright.  
"Chouji! Sakura!" she croaked "Where am I?" she added, confused. Looking around she didn't recognize the place. The young woman firmly pressed her shoulders back down onto the bed, which Ino hadn't noticed until just then.

"Everyone is fine, you included" she explained. "It was part of the test. No one would die, no matter which lever you pulled". Ino looked at her blankly as she shuffled up slightly to take a drink. She was sure she had drowned. Evidently not. She was relieved to hear that everyone was alright. She put the glass back down and looked at the other young woman  
"Who are you?" she asked, probably a bit more bluntly than she normally would have. The other woman bowed slightly.  
"I am Nodoka. I'm a medical ninja as well as your preliminary instructor for the final stage of the exam. I am to explain the previous stage as well as provide information on the final stage" she answered politely. Ino nodded, eager to hear how she had survived. Nodoka took a breath. "In the previous exam each member was led to seperate, identical chambers. Each chamber had a window through which the participant believed they saw their teammates struggling for life. In actuality each member of the team was presented with the same choice which you were. The teammates you thought you saw, were actually the result of a complex genjutsu" she explained, tapping her head as an illustration. Ino got the impression that she'd was quite new to her profession and had read and re-read the explanation herself a few times to remember it.

"The test was designed to test your honour; wether, in extreme circumstances, you could make the ultimate sacrifice for the greater good. If at least two of yor team pulled the left lever, you would pass; though the third would be reprimanded. To avoid conflict we request that you keep your decision private-" She was interrupted by Ino's gasp,  
"Wait... we passed?!" she said, her eyes lighting up. It had just hit her, they had made it through this trial. "Where are Sakura and Choji?" she asked grinning. She wanted to see them, to apologize to them, even though she didn't know why. Nodoka smiled back at her.  
"I was getting there, they will be in the room I lead you to once you are properly recovered" she answered. "But first, the rules: When you enter the room it will be pitch black. You are not to make a sound until the lights come on. After that, all you need to do is find your teammates and leave via the marked door"

No sooner had she finished than Ino had swung her legs out of the bed. She paused when she stood up. "Umm...where are my clothes?" she asked awkwardly as she looked down at the thin silk bedgown she was wearing. Nodoka giggled slightly.  
"They are drying at home, your mother dropped off some spare clothes, they are in that box over there" she answered pointing to the corner of the room. Ino changed hurriedly and grabbed her equipment before turning to Nodoka,  
"I'm ready" she said enthusiastically. She was one step away from passing Shikamaru's test. She wondered if he would be proud of her. She shook her head slightly. She had to stay focused. There was no way this challenge was as simple as the nurse had made it sound.

Ino followed Nodoka through another tunnel, lit by a small candle. It wasn't long before Nodoka was bowing and turning back, leaving Ino outside a small wooden door. Taking a deep breath Ino quietly entered the dark room. Not making a sound, she wondered how long she would have to wait. Only a minute or two later the lights flicked on and Ino flinched. circled around the room, standing in front of a door each... were three teams.... all of them her team.

Three Sakuras, three Choujis and two Inos all looked around at each other in shocked confusion. Ino grit her teeth. So that was the challenge. "Find your teammates and leave". But was this genjutsu or something else? This was likely a test to show that you could identify your teammates among imposters. Ino put a hand in her hip satchel. She had an idea to narrow it down, she just needed the right... there!  
"Hey Chouji!" she called out. "Look what I found"  
With that she threw a half-empty packet of Spicy Barbeque chips she had earlier confiscated from him into the centre of the room. As expected, all three leapt into the fray. The imposters had done their homework, that was certain. But Ino knew that the real Chouji was undefeatable when it came to fighting for food.

Sure enough, barely a minute later, two Jounin instructors bowed and sat out. It had become obvious who the real Chouji was when they both got pasted by his Human Boulder. Now contentedly munching on his chips, Chouji grinned. Ino called out, "Chouji! Now you have to find out which Sakura is the real one". Chouji turned to face her  
"I need to find the real Ino too" he pointed out. Ino grinned,  
"But why would an imposter just happen to be carrying your chips?" she asked.  
But it wasn't going to be that simple, one of the other Inos walked over to Chouji.  
"She's right, and since I was the one who threw the chips, you know I must be the real Ino".  
She was answered by the other two Inos angered protests. Chouji turned to look at the three of them. _"Three of them... great..." _he thought exhaustedly. He'd have to try and work out which one of them had thrown the bag of chips. What he wouldn't have given for Kiba's nose right now. He had probably picked out his teammates in seconds.

Something hit Chouji. He didn't need Kiba's nose at all. He turned to the three angry looking blondes.  
"Line up, I'll figure this out. If you refuse I'll assume you an imposter". he said firmly. The three of them stood in front of him, about three feet apart. Chouji walked up to the one on the far let. He asked her to show him her satchel. As he had figured, the bag was waterproof, which would explain how his chips had survived the previous test. He opened the bag for a few seconds before closing it and handing it back to it's owner. He took a step back.  
"Partial Multi-size technique!" he yelled, his right arm growing to a mammoth size. He grabbed the Ino whose bag he had just inspected. "You, are an imposter" he said, before slamming the impersonator headfirst into the ground with a swing of his gargantuan arm. Sure enough, the Jounin transformed back with a puff of smoke. Chouji turned to the other two.  
"Last chance. Will the other fake please step forward" Chouji requested. When neither of them did, he walked over to the next one. His arm shrinking back to normal. Once again he asked for her satchel. Once again he opened it for a few moments before shutting it and handing it back to her.  
"Partial Multi-size technique!" he yelled, as he crouched back. His leg stretched out suddenly, striking the third Ino, and launching them across the room, shattering one of the doors. He turned to the Ino whose satchel he had just inspected with a smirk.

Ino leapt forward and hugged Chouji tightly, glad that he had managed to discern her from the others. He explained that there was still a strong barbeque smell coming from her bag since she'd been carrying an open bag of chips all day. Ino wasn't sure if that really counted as identifying _her_ but it was smart enough, and the two Jounin went to join their other defeated comrades. The two of them turned to the three Sakuras, who all looked worried.

Ino thought of something almost immediately, but got the horrible feeling it wouldn''t work. She stepped towards them.  
"Sakura..." she began, a bit weakly. "What was the first thing I ever gave you?"  
All three of them looked slightly stunned. But before long one of them turned suddenly.  
"Oh I remember" she said, her eyes glazing slightly as she remembered when they were younger, "It was a red ribbon, you said I should show off my face more" she answered, her eyes watering slightly. The other two Sakuras glanced at each other and transformed back. Ino was surprised and ecstatic. This meant that not only had they passed, but they had passed because she had identified two of the teammates. For one of the first times she could remember, she felt as though she had actually contributed to the team's success.

They proceeded through the only door with any sort of markings. It had the Fire Country symbol on it. When they proceeded through they found themselves in an empty room, apart from a scroll on the opposite wall. It instructed them to place their hands on the circles beneath the writing. When they did, a puff of smoke formed behind them.

"Ah, it's good to see you all made it"

Ino spun around. It was Shikamaru. He was standing there with his trademark smirk. He walked over to them.  
"Congratulations, you've all just passed the First Chunin Exam"  
The three of them cheered and celebrated a while. Sakura swung Chouji around enthusiastically while Ino and Shikamaru laughed fromt he sidelines. Ino hadn't felt this happy all day. It was like a huge weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. She was sure she knew what to expect for the rest of the exams. She smiled at Shikamaru, who nodded back before clapping his hands together loudly to get the others' attention  
"Alright guys, time to head back to announce the results of the exam officially"

They were led back to the room they started in. There were a few disgruntled faces around the room; but everyone who had started was there. Hinata looked quite pale, ino figured she was probably still pretty shaken up from that second test. Scanning the room, Ino spotted Tenten, looking exhausted, but happy enough. The Cloud ninja from before weren't looking very confident. Shikamaru stood up the front and explained that if your name was read out, your team had failed and you were to leave. Soon there were a scattering of teams left around the room, including Teams Eight and Ten-Two, as well as Team Gai. Gaara and his team were still there, of course. A couple of teams from various other villages were whispering to themselves. Shikamaru cleared his throat authoritatively.  
"Now the rest of you will progress to the Se-"

This was as far as he got as a small explosion went off near him, filling the entire room with smoke. Ino felt a strange sensation of deja vu, as the smoke began to clear. Sure enough, when the smoke cleared there was a large banner hung across the front of the room.

**Anko Mitarashi: Proctor For The Second Chunin Exam Has Arrived!**

And sure enough, there she was, standing in an ostentatious pose with a ridiculous grin on her face. Once she saw that everyone was giving her an odd look she completely deflated. She folded her arms behind her head.

"Oh snap, I must be early again..."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
_Author's Note: Salutations! I guess I lied when I said I wouldn't write as much for a chapter ever again, so sorry for the wall of text and the long wait. I'll come clean, I had no idea what I'd do for the first exam until about halfway through November, and I'd like to thank my friend Mark for his help; cheers mate, sorry for changing a few details, it was easier to write this way. After that I blame the second stage of the exam for taking up my time. I couldn't write the suspense in a way I was happy with.*cuts off earlobe*_

_  
Is it just me or does this chapter remind anyone else of a certain pyschological horror film franchise which has released maybe 3 films too many? Just me? thought so..._

Anyway, Teaser: Next chapter will see the return of the 44th Training Ground, as well as some showcasing of the new exam entrants. Hopefully I won't shoot myself in the foot and have to write such a lengthy chapter again. A four month wait just wasn't fair :P

Snippet:  
"I'm only giving you four minutes from the signal. You have to find a team, take their scroll, and leave before then" he said calmly. His teammate didn't stir.  
"I'll only need three".


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight - When Darkness Falls

Anko and Shikamaru chatted for a brief moment before Anko turned to look across the room at the participants. She did a quick head count.  
"Well you did a slightly better job than Ibiki" she commented, "Maybe this time we won't need a preliminary round".  
Ino glanced around the room. Sure enough, she remembered a lot more people last time, when she had first met Anko. Presumably this was because this time there wasn't a cocky outburst to motivate people to stay. Not that it would really have helped with this exam. Ino started checking out the competition. All her classmates were still here, as well as the sand ninjas, a squad of grass ninja's were standing looking pretty tense in the centre of the room. Near the window a team of Waterfall ninja were lazily resting against the wall. Up the back of the room she saw the new leaf rookies, Katsurou sitting cross-legged between his standing teammates, wearing that eery smile of his, paying rapt attention to the proctors.

Anko went through her introductions as usual before instructing them to follow her. Team Ten-Point-Two filed out directly after her. On the way to the grounds Ino felt someone tap her shoulder. It was Sakura,  
"After that last exam I think we ought to think of a secret question" she whispered. "Something that only we could know, so we can identify each other faster"  
Ino nodded. That made sense; they had survived the last part of the test simply because Ino had an open bag of barbeque chips. They wouldn't get away with that out in the forest. As they walked, Ino unwound a blank scroll and scribbled down a question twice. Tearing them off she handed them back to Sakura, who nodded before passing one back to Chouji.

Soon they arrived at the large mesh fence which bordered the fourty-fourth training ground. This was the location of the second chunin exam, aptly nicknamed "The Forest of Death". Ino took one more tally of the number of teams which remained. There were a total of twenty-four teams remaining. Which meant that at most only twelve teams could make it through to the next round. Twelve teams of three... thirty-six people. Ino had never thought on it before, but this exam must have eliminated a lot of teams; after all, last year the finals had only featured nine gennin, and that was after a preliminary round eliminated eleven other people. Then she considered that people were given the option to leave before and after the second exam. If there were more people last year than there were this year, then there was, theoretically, a larger chance that a preliminary round wouldn't be required. This thought made Ino a bit more positive. After all it was the preliminary round that she had failed, along with Sakura.

She looked up to realise that she had missed Anko's explanation, and that teams were already lining up to collect their Heaven or Earth scrolls and sign their release forms. She and her team walked over to a free spot in the desk, where Izumo handed each of them a form and an Earth scroll. "Best of luck" he said with a smile. Thanking him they handed back their waivers and checked which gate they were to start at. As they made their way through the small crowd to start making their way around the fence, Ino overheard a familiar voice mutter something.  
"Twenty kilometers... this shouldn't be too hard..."  
She turned back to try and identify the speaker, but people were moving around too much and soon the other teams were out of sight as they rounded the perimeter, stopping when they reached their gate; number thirty-nine.

The other teams moved into position. Their gates had all been selected to be as equally separated from each other as possible. Each team began chatting rapidly, figuring out their final details. About twenty minutes after the last team had received their scroll, all the gates opened and the second exam began.

Ino, Sakura and Chouji darted in through the gate and immediately banked to the left off the beaten path into the underbrush. They knew some of the teams out there, and they would need the element of surprise if they could get it. As they ran, Ino took out a roll of bandages and began winding them around her arms. She wished she'd prepared a little better when she'd had the chance, but this would have to do for now.

Meanwhile, at gate number two. Three ninjas had not yet entered the forest. Katsurou turned to his teammates.  
"Manami, you're heading to the southernmost point on the perimeter. There's a group of tall oak trees near the river, give a signal when you get there" he instructed, handing her a small mirror, which she pocketed, nodding in understanding. "Rikuto, you know what you're task is" he said turning to face the Aburame. "I'm only giving you four minutes from the signal. You have to find a team, take their scroll, and leave before then" he said calmly. His teammate didn't stir.  
"I'll only need three".

Back in the forest, Team Asuma had reached the river, and were gathering some resources to last them the five days of the exams. They never left each other's sight, and made sure to keep a watchful eye out in case of attempted ambush. Sakura glanced over at Ino, who was catching fish a bit further upstream. She seemed incredibly determined. Had she been like this last time? Sakura couldn't put her finger on it; but there was something decidedly different about her old friend. She didn't seem as tense or angry as she had the pst few years. Sakura smiled as she returned to collecting water.

Rikuto stood outside the gate as his teammates disappeared. He removed a kunai from his hip-holster and slit his finger. Kneeling down he sketched a circular symbol on the ground before performing several hand seals.  
"Summoning Jutsu..."

Katsurou and Manami took up their positions, directly opposite each other at either end of teh forest's diameter. They balanced at the top of the tallest trees they could find, so the tower in the centre would not affect their work. Spotting the flash of Manami's signal, Katsurou sat cross-legged in the upper branches. Mouthing each symbol as he performed it, he began his Jutsu,  
"Tiger, Boar, Tiger, Horse, Ram, Dog, Tiger" he murmered, "Rolling Blackout Jutsu".  
A bolt of chakra burst from his hands and shot across the forest. Manami, also sitting cross-legged, took a deep breath as she saw it coming straight towards her.  
"Tiger, Dog, Ram, Horse, Tiger, Boar, Tiger" she muttered as she swiftly performed the counterseal. When the bolt hit her, a dome of light briefly flashed around the forest. The jutsu had been successful. Now it was up to Rikuto.

Inside the forest, many of the ninja began to panic as their vision seemed to simply black out. Whichever way they looked it was pitch black. Ino turned in fear, unable to see anything, she called out to her teammates. They called back but apparently none of them could see either. What was going on? It had happened far too quickly to be an eclipse. Ino tried to think; there was no blinding posoin which could have affected them all simultaneously. Suddenly the air was filled with a loud buzzing. Ino covered her ears instinctively and dropped to the ground; the sound reminded her of a wasp, but surely it was far too loud for that?

* * * * Elsewhere * * * *

"Neji!?" Tenten called out when suddenly everything went black. She heard the familiar sound of her teammate activating his byakugan. This was immediately followed by a surprised exclamation. Lee got there before her;  
"What's wrong?"  
"I can't see" Neji said simply, yet with a hint of irritance, "It's almost as if the darkness is made of pure chakra". True enough all he could see with his byakugan was shining blue. He could see no more than if he had never bothered at all. After a couple of tense minutes their vision clicked back to them. Immediately Neji checked they still had their scroll. Thankfully it was safe.  
"That was weird..." Tenten commented.

* * *

"What the hell!" Kankurou cried as everything went dark. He heard Temari unsheath her fan nearby, followed by Gaara's voice.  
"It's a genjutsu, and a powerful one at that" he said calmly, "I've created a barrier around us, I suspect this won't last long". Luckily they had been walking quite close to each other at the time and therefore it wasn't too hard to judge where to set his sand shield.

* * *

"It's no good... I can't see..." Hinata said, disheartened. Kiba growled slightly, they couldn't see, they couldn't even smell; Akamaru and himself had tried, but everything smelled exactly the same. It was like someone had jammed soap in their nostrils. It was impossible to discern anything. Shino was standing quietly, his bugs writhing in his skin; the air must be thick with chakra.

* * *

After a couple of minutes Ino heard her teammates exclaim in confusion. Opening her eyes she found she could see again. Standing up she exchanged a look of concern with her teammates. Suddenly Sakura's face was struck with fear as she turned and dashed back over to their fire, where all their bags sat, seemingly untouched. However, Sakura's face didn't improve when she returned.  
"Our scroll is gone!"  
Ino and Chouji gasped. Then it suddenly hit them; the darkness had been a genjutsu, and they had lost their scroll in less than an hour of starting the exam. Now they'd have to try and find one of each scroll. Ino's heart sank; for all her training she still hadn't been able to figure out what was going on before it was far too late. She felt a hand on her shoulder; it was Chouji.  
"Don't even begin to doubt our chances" he said with a smile, "There's no way I'm getting eliminated that easily after having to put up with fuzzy brows for all that time"  
Ino breathed a deep sigh as she perked herself up, smiling and nodding back at Chouji. He was right. This was just another obstacle in the path she'd have to overcome. She steeled herself as they began preparations to re-enter the fray.

* * * * At the South of the river * * * *

Katsurou panted as he held onto the branch above him for support. That jutsu took a lot out of both participants. No doubt Manami was in just as bad a condition as him. As long as Rikuto had done his job it wouldn't matter. Keeping his senses sharp and waiting for a sign of his comrade, he soon heard a light buzzing. Letting go of the branch above him he fell from the tree. After falling for a few seconds the buzzing grew louder before he landed on something slightly fuzzy. Carefully sitting up he gave Rikuto a grateful pat on the shoulder, behind him Manami was smiling, slightly dizzy looking. The two of them held each other up as the monstrous wasp they were riding made it's way to the central tower. Clearly Rikuto had managed to get his hands on an Earth scroll. Katsurou fished out their Heaven scroll from his pocket.  
"Not too hard... like I said..." he said with a smile.

Atop the tower, Anko looked on in disbelief as three ninjas approached the door. How on earth could these three rookies have already obtained both scrolls? Well they still had to survive until the fifth day; and standing in the open in their fatigued condition didn't do anything for them.  
"Interesting..." she muttered with a grin. "Maybe this exam will be more fun than I thought"

_Author's Notes:  
Wow! I got such positive feedback for that last chapter, thank's all! *wears his "proud crown"* So I wrote this note a week after posting the last chapter as I was starting writing this one. The plan is not to make you wait too long (If I did then sorry!)_

_Teaser Time: The next chapter will conclude the second exam, but who will make the cut?_  
Snippet:

"If you've got an Earth scroll then hand it over, if not then get out of our way" she snapped at them. Ino nimbly slid a poison tipped senbon into each of her hands from their holders in her sleeve bandages.  
"Come and get it..."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine - Tripwires and Forest Fires

The three of them leapt from tree to tree, their eyes darting around; scanning for enemy teams. It had been three hours since the start of the exam and two since they had decided on their plan. They were more confident than they were at the last exam, since they had some idea what to expect, and had greatly improved their skill. With this in mind they decided to battle whichever team they found first, unless it was their comrades or the Suna team.

Although despite her determination, the afternoon sun beating down upon them through the treetops was beginning to get on Ino's nerves. She motioned to her teammates to stop on a large branch.  
"There's no point in rushing, since it's the first day, right?"

Sakura nodded, breathing a little heavier. They had been a bit too energetic, they would need as much of their stamina as possible if they were going to defeat _two_ squads.

"Get down!" Choji suddenly whispered coarsely.  
He pointed down into a clearing, where three Kirigakure ninjas were standing, looking worn out. Ino grinned as she clutched the kunai in her waist bandage.  
"Easy prey"

* * *

Tenten fell to her knees, unwound scrolls waving out from each of her hands and a slew of weapons scattered around the base of the massive oak tree. Lee lay twitching behind her, clearly trying to struggle against the paralysis with which he'd been afflicted. Neji was crawling about five feet away from him, clutching his face. These grass ninja weren't kidding around; it had taken them seconds to blind Neji and debilitate Lee. As much as she had been training, Tenten was no match for three of them. But that had by no means prevented her from trying.

One of the grass ninja stepped forward, holding one hand out expectantly, while twirling two vials in her other.  
"You're teammates need these antidotes within the hour, or their ailments will become permanent" she explained, "I will trade you these for your scroll. Consider it a kindness, since we could easily leave you here"  
Tenten grit her teeth defiantly as she glared up at her opponent. Slowly she struggled to her feet, only to fall flat on her back again. It was no use. They would have to surrender for now. She took the scroll out from Lee's leg sleeves and tossed it to the grinning kunoichi.  
"Pleasure doing business with you" she mocked as she placed the vials on the ground and vanished.  
"Dammit" Tenten cursed as she aided her team. She wondered how the others were doing

* * *

"This is absolutely freaking ridiculous!" Kiba growled as he slouched back against the tree trunk. Shino landed to the side of him and looked down at the scruffy boy and his dog. They had been searching all day and hadn't been able to hunt down a single enemy squad. Given that they were, by all descriptions, a tracker squad, this was unbearably embarrassing.

Hinata and Kiba had taken their hoodies off under the influence of the heat. Neither could understand how their companion could bear that heavy looking trenchcoat. More than that, Hinata's thoughts drifted to her new friends. "I wonder if they've had any luck" she thought as she sat cross legged. As she sat there she turned her mind to Naruto; she wondered if he would notice how much stronger she had gotten while he was away.

"Oh Hinata" Kiba said with a teasing tone, "You wouldn't happen to be thinking about a certain hyperactive blonde knucklehead would you?" he continued with a wide grin.  
"H-how did you-" Hinata stammered, turning beetroot, causing Kiba to laugh loudly.  
"It's a habit you've developed since you started growing your hair out, you fidget with the ends whenever you talk about him, so I figured you might be doing it now because you're thinking about him" the Inuzuka kid explained, trying to hold in his chuckling.  
"If you were half as dedicated to your missions as you are to poking fun at Hinata, you might be a decent ninja by now" Shino said bluntly, causing Kiba to forget about Hinata in lew of threatening and yelling at the bug master.

Temari searched the unconscious Iwagakure ninjas. Eventually she pulled out a scroll with "Earth" marked on the side.  
"Ahhhh, just our luck" Kankuro complained, looking over her shoulder, "We find someone and they have the same one as us" he raised an eyebrow as he watched Temari pocket the scroll anyway. "Whatcha keeping that for? it's useless"  
Temari sighed irritated before turning to her ignorant brother.  
"Besides the fact that we can use it as a bargaining piece as well as eliminating another group from the exams, I happen to have personal reasons for carrying spares" she explained, talking as if to a child, "So shut up and let's keep going; ready Gaara?"

* * *

As she landed in the clearing, Sakura sighed loudly.  
"I can't believe they didn't have a scroll either" she complained, massaging her knuckles after that last fight. Choji handed her a water flask.  
"Don't worry, we've still got plenty of time" he said encouragingly, although he had to admit, it was a bit demotivating to spend an entire day searching and only finding one team. Ino had already began placing traps and alarms around the area; they would stop here to sleep, taking shifts. Or at least that had been the plan.

A trail of fire raced directly for them. Luckily, Sakura reacted quick enough to bury her fists into the ground, bringing up a small wall of earth, stopping the flames from reaching them. Ino leapt down from the branches above, taking her stance with the team. Three ninja stepped out from the now burning foliage. They were Hidden Waterfall ninja.  
"Looks like your trap failed, Izumi" One of them said calmly. The female standing at the front of the trio turned to him  
"Shut it!" she yelled, before facing them again. "If you've got an Earth scroll then hand it over, if not then get out of our way" she snapped at them. Ino nimbly slid a poison tipped senbon into each of her hands from their holders in her sleeve bandages.  
"Come and get it..."

The three ninja rushed forward. Ino leapt backwards into the lower branches of a nearby tree, letting her senbon fly as she went. One went clear over the head of the mouthy kunoichi, the other grazed the cheek of the teammate she had reprimanded. Ino grinned.  
"The one on the left won't be a problem in a minute or two" she called to the others, "Sakura, keep the other guy busy, Choji, get ready"  
They both nodded and Ino performed a few hand seals. As expected, the waterfall kunoichi ignored Choji and leapt up towards Ino. But it was too late.  
"Mind Transfer Jutsu!"

Ino's body fell from the tree into Choji's expanded hand. After placing her down carefully he turned back to the enemy kunoichi, who had leapt back down to the clearing.  
"All yours, Choji" she said with a grin. Choji expanded his other arm and gripped her tightly with both arms. "Release!"  
Ino stood up. Their tactic had been a success, they now had her restrained. Looking over she saw the unfortunate shinobi who had been hit by her senbon slouching against a large root. The paralysis would last approximately forty minutes. The final Waterfall ninja leapt away from Sakura and threw shuriken at Choji, attempting to make him lose his grip. This momentary distraction was all Sakura needed. She focused the chakra in her hand, trying to make a blade of it. She had always struggled with this, but if it could work just this once it would mean the end of the fight. She swung her imperfect chakra blade at the Waterfall ninja's knee.

"Too slow!" he cried as he pulled his leg up and spun into a kick, sending Sakura across the clearing. Then he started to charge Choji. But before he got halfway there he was engulfed in smoke. When it cleared he was aware of a kunai pressed against his throat. Ino chuckled slightly.  
"Both my senbon served their purpose" she stated, kicking the broken shell of her smoke bomb away. "The one that hit your friend was simply a poison tipped senbon. But the other one was attached to a hair thin wire I'd tied to a smoke bomb earlier, and _you_ tripped it."

"Water Style: Aqua Bullets!" came the cry from behind Ino. The ninja she was holding turned to water before her eyes. A substitution! Moving as lithely as she could she dodged the volley of water. Before she could regain sight of her opponent she was sent flying towards the tree as his knee connected with the side of her face. Getting up in time to see Sakura sprint towards him she ran to the kunoichi who was still swearing and threatening Choji while trying to squirm free.  
"Choji, plant her in the ground for now, we need to take that guy down fast" she instructed. Choji lifted the kunoichi high up and brought her crashing to the ground, with effects resembling the Head Hunter Jutsu.

Once Choji was free to help it was simple to take the last ninja down. Ino and Sakura kept up a relentless attack until Choji managed to catch a hold of their opponents foot and slam them into a tree, knocking him out cold. This left the buried kunoichi as the only conscious one left. Sakura walked over to her.  
"You saw what I did to the ground earlier. Give up your scroll or your face is next" she threatened.  
"Like I'd ever!" she screamed, "I'm not giving up my opportunity to beat some respect into that stuck up sand kunoichi" she continued bitterly. Ino couldn't help but sympathize with that, Temari was quite obnxoious, even if you didn't have a more personal grudge against her, like Ino did. However, they needed the scroll, and having the ground right next to her pounded to dust was enough to encourage the feisty shinobi to reconsider. They collected the Heaven scroll from the poisoned ninja before disappearing, feeling even more enthusiatic than they had before as the fire from earlier burned brightly, lighting the twilight behind them.

Taking a deep breath Katsurou tilted his head towards the bushes from which his team-mate had just emerged. She looked refreshed, which was a good sign,  
"You found someone then?" he asked with a slight smile.  
"Yup! There were some Rock village ninja lying unconscious not far from here, they had full chakra too" Manami answered cheerily. She sat down between Katsurou and Rikuto, who looked as though he was sleeping. "I wish my chakra recharged as fast as yours" she complained, her blue eyes flicking to the Nara genin.  
"I wish I had even a fraction of your chakra control" he answered simply, tilting his head back to look at the clouds rolling overhead. The two of them sat with their back against the central tower. The new rule involving the tower remaining locked until the final day made their record breaking acquisition of the scroll pointless.

They sat there for a further hour or so. It was close to noon on the third day. Soon Katsurou would go catch fish from the river which flowed nearby, while Manami started the fire, and Rikuto set up a new set of sentry bugs. So had been the routine since they first got to the tower at the start of the exam. Katsurou was just thinking how it was unusually fortunate that they'd gone so far without encountering an enemy when Rikuto suddenly flung a kunai towards a tree, causing a Rain ninja to sidestep into view.  
"Well spotted" he said, glancing at the kunai for a moment before facing the three of them, "But it won't save you; Senbon Rainstorm!"  
Before he could throw his weapon up into the sky Manami's foot had planted into his face, knocking him out cold.  
"I don't know what you were about to do, but not today!" she turned to give a thumbs up and a grin to her team.

Katsurou laughed quietly to himself as he watched his team-mate put her guard back up. It had always amused him how cheerful she could be at the most inappropriate times. He tilted his head to the side slightly.  
"Where are the others?" he whispered to Rikuto, who responded by facing a different tree. "Right, I'll get that one, you find the last and set Manami on them"  
With that he stood up and performed several hand seals and, to all onlookers, would have appeared to sink into the ground.  
He walked out of the woods nearby moments later with another ninja slung over his shoulder, while Manami caught another one who had tried to flee.  
"What sort of slime abandons his team" she scolded before knocking him out. Katsurou took the bodies with him to the river where he let them wash downstream.  
"How tedious" he commented as he sat back down with the others to eat.

* * *

The three of them stood silently among the leaves, looking down on the passers by.  
"Should we risk it?"  
"No, we agreed not to at the beginning"  
"It _is _the last day though"  
"Have you forgotten what they are capable of?"  
Their whispers were silenced as the group they were discussing suddenly stopped and looked up towards them. Temari growled slightly.  
"You! The morons up in that tree! Get down here!"

Ino, Sakura and Choji landed in a close knit group, keeping their eyes on the sand ninja across from them. Gaara stood farthest back, facing away from them all with his arms crossed. Kankuro stood looking impatiently over Temari's shoulder. Temari seemed to be staring daggers at Ino. Soon she stepped forward and all three of them tightened their grip on their weapons. Temari stopped.  
"Relax, I don't want to fight you. I want to talk with _you_" she said, pointing at Ino, "Alone".

Naturally they were tentative, but decided to take her word for it when she handed her fan to her brother and walked off into the woods by herself. Ino followed reluctantly. They wandered until they were out of earshot, then Temari turned to face her.  
"Do you need either of the scrolls" she asked Ino bluntly. The leaf kunoichi blinked in surprise.  
"We're still looking for an Earth scroll..." she answered tentatively, "...why?"  
Temari paced back and forth in front of her, seemingly lost in thought. She began mumbling as if arguing with herself. After a moment she seemed to come to a decision. Reaching into her belt she pulled out an Earth scroll and thrust it towards Ino.  
"Take it" she said with an acidic tone, as if she might reconsider at any moment. Ino kept her hands to herself.  
"What's the catch" she enquired accusingly  
"Face me, one on one, in the finals"  
Ino was stunned. So Temari wanted to fight her too? What was her motive? Could it have been intrigue after last years exams? But Ino had tied in her match, and didn't feel like she'd performed spectacularly or anything. In the end she decided it would be unfair on the team to risk passing because of her pride. She took the scroll from the Suna nin's trembling hand.  
"Deal" she agreed, exchanging a fiery stare with the other kunoichi.

* * *****

Anko lifted the large wooden bar locking the tower door and pushed them open, allowing sunlight to spill in across the hall. Moments later three shinobi walked in looking surprisingly no worse for wear.  
"Well well, looks like another successful year for the rookies" she said in a slightly congratulatory tone as she pointed them towards the wall scroll. Sooner or later three more teams came in. Another Konoha team, the Suna team from last year and a Kusagakure squad. The latter group dropped a large pile of scrolls at the door, keeping a pair to themselves. "Well that explains the lack of teams" Anko thought to herself as she went to attend the Hokage's speech.

It didn't take as long to get through the main points of the speech this time around. Tsunade-sama wasn't one for beating around the bush. Thankfully there were few enough remaining participants to negate the neccesity of a preliminary exam, so they began drawing lots for their final matches.  
"Four" Ino called when prompted.  
"Five" Sakura stated.  
"Two" announced Choji.

"Eleven" a Grass ninja with a large sheath on his back answered.  
"Eight" called the Grass kunoichi who had been eyeing Temari.  
"One" squeaked a scrawny looking Grass ninja who seemed to be slouching to minimize himself.  
"Twelve" said Katsurou clearly.  
"Six" Manami sang brightly.  
"Nine" Rikuto responded abruptly.  
"Seven" Gaara grunted.  
"Ten" Kankuro answered lazily.

"Three" Temari smirked, barely hiding the satisfaction in her voice as she turned to look down the line at Ino.

So the matches were set. Ino was going to face Temari in her first match, the second one of the finals. Sakura was set to fight her cousin; Choji, Katsurou and Gaara were squaring off against the Grass ninjas, and Kankuro had another Aburame opponent. The month leading up to the exams was bound to be dedicated to training mercilessly. Ino smiled as she fixed her eyes on Shikamaru, who was attending as an exam proctor. She had so much more to fight for than the simple rank of Chunin.****

-_A/N: Thanks again for waiting, I'm too unkind to you all, I know. You can thank DJ-Rage for this chapter, as I doubt it would have been up even this soon if I hadn't been inspired by his fic "Sandstorm"... in fact... go read it. Everyone who reviews Rose Tinted Clouds and who also reads Sandstorm, reviewing it with "Cool Story Bro" will get a cameo in the epilogue, how does that sound?  
Anyway enough shameless plugging, time for teasers!_

She walked forward with a slight frown on her face.  
"I suggest you surrender, you're not the one I wanted to fight..." she glared across at him, "... fat boy!"


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten - A Costly Defense

Ino pushed herself to the limits during her training. Asuma wasn't sure whether or not to offer his assistance, or to simply leave her to it. It was unbelievable how hard she was working, and how much stronger she was getting, even compared to her improvement before the exams. Occasionally Shikamaru would watch his team-mates train from the shadows. Even apart from Choji evidently losing a little weight with Gai, he was most surprised with the progress Ino was making; after all she had always complained about hard work, almost as much as he did.

"Well, maybe these exams won't be so boring to watch" he muttered to himself with a smirk, before disappearing into the trees.

Ino fell to the ground exhausted. She had gone all out for the last five minutes. That seemed to be her limit without conservation. Looking up at the stump she had been using as an opponent she wondered if she would be able to pull off this manoeuvre in actual combat. Asuma walked over to her.

"I think you'd better call it a day, before you burn out all your chakra" he suggested, placing a large hand on her shoulder.

"Yes, sensei" Ino panted as she lifted herself up. Then a thought occurred to her, "Asuma-sensei, you're a wind type, aren't you?"

Her teacher nodded with a slightly confused look on his face. His young student's face lit up and a wide smile spread across her flushed face.

"Do you think you could fight me, so I can practise against moving targets, and wind type jutsu?" she asked, bowing her head slightly, "After all, there's no more skilled wind user than _my_ sensei"

Asuma grinned. He couldn't help himself; he was a sucker for compliments. Taking a long draw from his cigarette he placed his hand on her head.

"Well now, what kind of sensei would I be if I said no?"

"Seven hundred and sixty two!"

"You are doing very well, even if you do not manage one thousand, you will still be that many laps stronger"

Choji and Lee continued their laps around the base of the great Hokage mountain. Choji's thoughts were fixed on each step, each jump, each obstacle. He would overcome them without fail. Lee had congratulated him on his progression to the final round, while expressing obvious disappointment that he would not be joining him. Gai had made it known that Choji was an honorary member of Team Gai now, and that his success would make them proud regardless.

Even Neji had consented to help him with his jutsu once or twice. Tenten smiled on as she rested from her own training. The idea had been to help Choji to get strong to help Ino through the second exam, and it had been a success. Now it was all down to Ino herself. But it was still good to know her meddling had helped multiple people for a change.

* * *

Gaara wandered through the moonlit streets of Konoha. Ignoring the glares from the occasional passing shinobi. They were to be expected, after the events of the last exam. Baki was still paranoid about him being alone after the incident with Dosu. But there was no need. He had learned a lot from that experience. He had found new reasons for living; his brother and sister, his village. Wether or not the Sound village was a threat to the Leaf meant nothing to him anymore.

His eyes widened as his sand flew up behind him. When it came down there were several senbon scattered on the ground. Looking down at them Gaara noticed they were tipped with some sort of serum. There was no telling what could have happened if they had hit. Before he had time to think another set flew from another direction.

"All right" he growled, "Enough of your games. Come out before I drag you out"

In response he was engulfed in smoke. He'd had enough of this. When the smoke cleared the ground was almost obscured with weapons. A thick trail of sand led from Gaara to the back of a nearby building.  
"Got you"  
The sand began to retract, dragging with it a short ninja, who was squirming, desperately trying to free his legs from the sand. Gaara lifted him up.  
"I know you, you're one of those Grass ninja. What's the meaning of this?"

His opponent calmed down and looked him straight in the eye.  
"The meaning is to eliminate you, so Yui can have her wish" he squeaked before flinging his arms out, throwing more weapons at Gaara. The sand shinobi instinctively clenched his fist, causing the sand to compress. The grass ninja screamed out in pain. Two ANBU appeared, Gaara grimaced. This wouldn't bode well.

* * *

It had been almost three weeks since the second exam had finished. Asuma had to admit, though he hadn't taken the kid gloves off with Ino in their training, he had certainly taken out some of the padding. He really felt that she was ready to take on most of the competitors. Though there were a couple that he wasn't sure about. When he had discussed his concerns with her she had simply told him:  
"If I believe there's even the slimmest chance I'll win, then I'm fighting"

Just as he was about to try and convince her to think carefully about her opponents, Aoba appeared beside him.  
"Good morning Asuma, I was wondering if Ino Yamanaka and Choji Akimichi are free for a moment?"

"Choji's with Gai, but Ino's right over there." Asuma answered, turning to the shinobi, "Are we really so stretched for resources that they're sending people of _your _rank to deliver exam news?"

Ino jogged over to the two of them. Bowing respectively to Aoba she asked what was going on.

"There's been a change in the exam tournament bracket" he answered, handing her a scroll. Ino unrolled the paper and glanced over the new match setup. She gasped as she found she wouldn't be facing Temari in the first round after all. After scanning through the names she noticed there were two people missing.  
"What happened to Gaara?" she asked, "And there's a grass ninja missing from here too"

Aoba frowned slightly.  
"Well you see after the commotion Suna caused at the last exam, they were on a sort of probation with the leaf. If they put so much as a toe out of line they would imprisoned by the ANBU.  
Ino nodded to show she understood. But did this mean that Gaara was now being held by the ANBU? what had happened? She knew he'd had something to do with the disappearance of that Sound ninja last time around.

"Well it turns out that Gaara crippled one of the Grass Ninja, leaving him unable to stand, let alone compete. Normally this would be breach of probation, but it was discovered that he was acting in self-defense. So he was let off with withdrawal from the exams"

Ino looked over the scroll again. Her number hadn't been affected, but everyone from seven upwards had been changed. She looked through and realised that it was Choji's original opponent that wasn't participating. Instead he'd be against Gaara's adversary. Ino gulped as she reread the name of her new challenger in the first round. She began trembling, though she herself couldn't tell whether it was from fear or excitement.  
"Thank you, now if you'll excuse me, I have a new training regime to follow"

* * *

The day of the exams finally arrived. Not a single participant said a word as they walked into the battle arena. Neither did any of them as much as glance at one another. Each of them did however, wear the same look of utter determination. Tsunade couldn't help but smile down at them. They reminded her of how she had felt when she stood there so many years ago.

Ino wasn't paying a lot of attention during the opening ceremony. No doubt the Hokage's speech would be similar if not identical to last time. She was busy trying to keep herself in check. There were some pretty big obstacles for her to overcome. But the prize at the end; that had to make it worth it, right? She had resolved to fight to her last breath for this, and nothing was going to change that. She'd lived too long behind this veil to fall back when she was finally ready to emerge.

"Choji Akimichi, Yui Rukihiro: please remain in the arena. The rest of you move up to the waiting area"

* * *

The two shinobi looked across at each other. The grass Kunoichi seemed to be waiting for something.

She walked forward with a slight frown on her face.  
"I suggest you surrender, you're not the one I wanted to fight..." she glared across at him, "... fat boy!"

That had sealed it. Choji's eyes flared. He tensed himself and slid into a battle stance. Ino had never seen him look so intimidating. She pumped her fists in the air.  
"Go on Choji! Show her just what chubbies are capable of!"  
Choji grinned menacingly.  
"Don't worry, I plan to"

Genma signalled the start of the bout, and the grass kunoichi immediately let several kunai and senbon fly. Choji performed several hand seals.  
"Thick Skin Jutsu!"  
He appeared to simply grow slightly bigger. However the weapons simply bounced off him.

"Lee warned me that you use poisons, that won't work on me!"  
With that he shrank back to his normal size, but only for a moment before launching into his human boulder. He charged towards Yui with incredible speed. She was just able to avoid being flattened.  
_"He can't use both jutsu at once, he's vulnerable as that boulder,_ _and a bigger target"_

She flung a single kunai towards Choji, as long as she could break his skin and get her poison into his bloodstream this would be over soon. She was shocked however, to see her kunai flying back towards her.  
"How!"

Choji came out of his boulder, and turned to face her.  
"A little trick I learned from training with one of the Hyuga clan" he explained, "By expelling a strong burst of chakra from my body I was able to repel your attack".  
He grinned across at her. She wasn't about to get him with ranged attacks. She would have to come into close range. Which would place her exactly where he wanted her.

Yui had already come to the conclusion that ranged attacks wouldn't work this way. However she knew her weakness lay in close quarters combat. She swiftly performed hand seals.  
"Earth Style: Entwining Roots Jutsu"  
From the ground directly underneath Choji erupted several thick ropes of grass, which wrapped themselves around his legs  
"Now I have you trapped. You can either surrender, or I'll paralyze you" she explained. "You can't blast your chakra forever, but I have an almost endless source of poison. Make your choice"

Choji made his decision without missing a beat.  
"Partial Multi-Size Jutsu!"  
His legs expanded, straining and eventually breaking the ropes around them. he then spun into a kick towards Yui. The Grass Kunoichi was knocked towards the arena wall. She managed to kick off and land safely.  
_"Dammit, looks like he's tougher than I thought, oh well"_

Choji brought his legs back to regular proportions. He had been stupid to think she could be lured in so easily. It looked like he'd have to go after her. He began to charge forward. He expanded his arm, intending to punch her clean through the wall.  
"Earth Style: Paralytic Spores!"  
Choji gasped as a cloud of yellow dust blew straight into his face, irritating his eyes. He felt his punch connect with the wall.

When he tried to reach for his eyes to rub the offending substance away he found his arms felt heavy. He was having severe difficulty moving. When he tried to stand up he was surprised to find he couldn't move a muscle.

"This round goes to Yui Rukihiro, of the Village Hidden in the Grass"

-

A/N: Well, here's the next chapter. Be honest, you thought it would be ages before you saw hide or hair of it (me too).  
Not much to say except thanks as always for the reviews. Oh and maybe mention the word "Nightfall" and "YoinokuchiStudios" in the same breath. But that's probably not necessary.

Teaser:  
She began stretching.  
"Give it your all; I'll need the warm up before fighting _him_" she said with a wink.  
"You expect any less?" her opponent answered calmly.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven - The Cerulean Tornado

Ino sighed as she watched her friend's twitching form leave the arena on a stretcher. She had to hand it to him, he'd come a long way from the food-obsessed lump he had been in his Academy days. She was proud to be on his team, and she planned to fight extra hard for both of them. She looked down at Yui as she walked up to the opposite waiting area. She seemed to have her own goal in these exams.

"Manami Haruno, Rikuto Aburame; please make your way to the arena!" Genma called out.

Manami Haruno. That was Sakura's step-cousin wasn't it? And she'd be fighting Shino's relative. Her own team-mate. Despite this neither of them seemed upset. in fact, Manami appeared to be grinning madly. She began stretching.  
""Give it your all; I'll need the warm up before fighting _him_" she said with a wink.  
"You expect any less?" her opponent answered calmly.

After a few moments the crowd calmed down and Genma raised his hand.  
"Begin!"

Ino gasped as Manami seemed to disappear. She started scanning the arena, trying to locate her. Just as she was about to give up, she heard a soft voice beside her.  
"Look a bit higher, near the top of the wall"  
Ino flicked her head around. It was Katsurou, Shikamaru's cousin. His eyes were flickering back and forth rapidly. Ino followed his gaze and focused near the top of the arena wall. Her eyes widened as she saw a thin blue ring.

"What on earth..." she began, unable to find the right words to finish her question.

"Magnificent isn't it?" Katsurou commented, a hint of admiration in his voice, "She's known as Konoha's Cerulean Tornado among our classmates"

Manami kept her gaze fixed on Rikuto as she ran around the top of the arena wall. At this speed it was like seeing him from every angle at once. But he could only guess where she was. She knew this wasn't much of an advantage against an opponent like him, but she'd have to take any precaution.

Suddenly she launched off the wall, bouncing off the ground right beside him and leaping back into the trees opposite. That had been close. She had been so fixated on making sure she saw every move he made after they started that she hadn't considered premeditated tactics. The single wasp flew back down to it's master.  
"Pity, a quick match would have been nice" he said coolly.

Without warning, he was launched into the air. Many of the crowd and a few of the spectating ninja gasped in awe.

"Lee! wasn't that-!" Tenten began.  
"Yes. The Leaf Whirlwind!. It would seem that she too is a master of Taijutsu!" the young Genin was now more pumped up than ever. He had never been so itching to fight in his life. This girl was of a similar type to him, and would have made an excellent opponent. Oh, if only he had been able to make it through the forest!

"Hidden Leaf Taijutsu: Flurry of Fists!" the young girl cried as she phased out of sight. Suddenly, Rikuto appeared to be receiving an incredible number of blows, though no one could see where the assailant was. There wasn't even so much as a blue blur to follow. Manami smiled as she connected punch after punch in rapid succession. This fight was hers.

At least that's what she had thought. But her opponent began to break apart into a buzzing swarm of wasps. A clone! She landed, and immediately blocked a kick from behind."  
"I should've known" she grunted energetically as she spun around, attempting to catch Rikuto with a reversal.

The young Aburame peered out from the trees as his team-mate punch through yet another clone. Close up, he didn't stand much of a chance. But she was too observant to fall for his other tricks. He only had one option left.  
"Ninja Art: Scorpion Blades" he mumbled, causing two thin swords to emerge from the palms of his hands.  
He ran out, keeping his palms facing backwards to hide the blades. As predicted, Manami slipped back into her defensive stance.

What happened next was too fast for most people to see. Manami dropped down to catch the oncoming Rikuto in a second Whirlwind. The Aburame however, stopped so close he felt the wind come off her leg. Bringing his arms forward he lightly scratched her her calves. He retracted the blades immediately and turned to face the proctor.  
"This match is over. Bring out a medical ninja. Give them this" he said pontedly, throwing a small tube to Genma. "Please apply it quickly".

Ino was completely dumbstruck. He had won against someone who had seemed to have him against the ropes the entire fight. Next to her Katsurou sighed.  
"They were a poor match for each other, really" he commented lazily, "Rikuto hasn't the mobility to keep up with taijutsu, and Manami doesn't consider alternate possibilities"  
Ino could really see that this kid was a Nara. He had that same way of describing things as if every little thing was a move in a strategy game. Watching as Manami was given the antidote for the neurotoxin which had attacked the nerves in her legs, she wondered is _she_ would have to face that.

"Yui Rukihiro, Temari of the Sand; please make your way to the arena!"

Ino's attention was brought sharply back to the tournament. This was her chance to scout Temari's moves. Hopefully this grass ninja could force her to reveal some of her tricks. For the first time, she was a little glad that her match had been changed. Looking down at the two kunoichi she couldn't help but notice that Yui was smiling.

"I've been looking forward to this" she called out, "Facing last years top kunoichi"

Temari shrugged and folded out her fan. Clearly she wasn't going to waste time with this newcomer. As Genma raised his hand she lifted the fan abover her head.

"Begin!"

She spun the fan around and disappeared. Yui wasn't fooled and immediately leaped up to where she was floating. The two of them exchanged blows atop the gliding fan until Yui grabbed the edge and spun it away from Temari.  
"I know better than to let you get to work with that" she said as she jumped up into the air, "Poison Fog Justu!"  
Clouds of purple smoke began to billow from her mouth, threatening to engulf Temari.

The sand shinobi dashed away from the smog, all the time trying to edge closer to her fan. This brat was proving to be more of a nuisance than she had expected. She performed several hand seals.  
"Wind Style: Autumn Gust!"  
She blew the smog back towards Yui, who was forced to circle away from the fan, giving Temari a perfect opportunity to retrieve her weapon.

When she turned around however, her opponent had disappeared. After a moment of standing on her guard searching she heard a voice.  
"Shou was a fool, risking his life by attacking that red haired boy" it said slyly, "But I suppose I must thank him; after all, now it would have been so much harder to get you as an opponent otherwise"  
Temari leaped back just in time to avoid three senbon, which had flown up from the ground. She lifted herself up onto her fan and glided up into the air.

"Excellent, I expected no less"

Temari landed at the opposite end of the battle arena. And immediately wished she hadn't, as her feet sank into the grass. She struggled helplessly as her opponent emerged from the ground. She was knee deep now, and completely stuck. Yui walked casually towards her, her hands performing an Ox seal.  
"I don't care how fast you think you are" she said venomously, "If I use poison fog at this range, then it's over. Surrender or die"

The Suna kunoichi grit her teeth. She had fallen into such an obvious trick. Perhaps _too_ obvious. She brought her hands together into a tiger seal.  
"Release!"  
The genjutsu faded and the grass around her legs melted back into the ground. Yui smiled.  
"Clever girl"

She didn't have time to do anything further as Temari aimed a roundhouse kick at her face. Flipping away from the attack, the grass ninja blew a cloud of poison gas towards her opponent.

Unfortunately for her, she had understimated how quickly Temari could swing that enormous fan when there was need. The cloud came washing back over her so fast that there was no chance of her dodging it. When the cloud cleared, medical nin were already forcing antidote pills down her throat.

"Victory goes to Temari of the Sand"

As she walked towards the waiting area the kunoichi shot Ino a glance that quite plainly dared her to lose her match. She stood by Kankuro to patiently wait for the match _that _she had been looking for ever since the forest. She had at first planned to simply kill that stuck up Princess out in the fourty-fourth. But an indisputable victory in front of hundreds of spectators would be so much more satisfying.

Ino was trembling with excitement. Temari had made it to the semi finals. Now it was her turn; if she was going to keep her word. But it wasn't going to be easy; she had put most of her training into learning to fight Temari, a ranged fighter. But her new first opponent was a lose range specialist.

"Ino Yamanaka, Sakura Haruno; make your way to the arena"

-  
A/N I've gone from having such bad writer's block that I can't update for months at a time, to writing chapters ten and eleven as well as the final part of Lilies (Shinobi Chronicles) in two days. It's so weird.

New rule: I'll post a chapter only when I have two more chapters in reserve, that way if it IS taking a long time to write a chapter, I'll stick one of the reserves up.

Thanks as always for the reviews, hope the constant fight scenes are more interesting to read than they are to write.

Also, Choji extends his gratitude to those of you who expressed their comiserations; he wants you to know that he's recovered from the paralysis and will be top of his game after about seven more bowls of the Ichiraku House Special ^^

Teaser:  
He couldn't help but notice a familiar face forming in the clouds, almost as if in answer to his thoughts.  
"No... that's just not believable" he thought to himself, but wether or not he actually believed himself, he wasn't sure.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve - The Rematch

The two Konoha kunoichi walked down to the arena together in complete silence. The crowd rumbled with conversation as they took their starting positions. Sakura smiled across at her friend before speaking.  
"Hey Ino" she called to get the blonde's attention, "I know how much winning this exam means to you; and that's why I refuse to go easy. Bring it on!"  
Ino nodded as she unbuckled her headband from her waist and wrapped it around her forehead, exactly as she'd done at the last exam.

Genma looked from one to the other, making sure they were ready before raising his hand.

"Begin!"

Déja vú struck as Ino leaped backwards to avoid Sakura's first punch. What she didn't expect was that she'd have to duck immediately to avoid a kick. So she hadn't been kidding when she said she wasn't going to pull her punches. The Yamanaka gennin darted into the thin scattering of trees at the edge of the coliseum. She wasn't entirely sure how she planned to win this. She wanted to save some of her new moves for later rounds. But this wasn't like last time; getting hit by one of those punches would be like getting hit by a cannonball.

She had to keep running; Sakura was clearly not going to let her set any traps like last time. She'd also be watching her step. Besides, Ino was sure the crowd were tired of victory by paralysis or poisoning. Ino also knew better than to try her Mind Transfer on her old friend. Which didn't leave her many options.

She ran and dodged, with Sakura close on her tail. The crowd made their displeasure apparent, apart from a few who found the whole scene to be quite humorous. Ino decided to try and land a hit. She back-flipped over Sakura's head. She was rewarded with a searing pain right across her back. Sakura had been ready for her and had slashed her back with a kunai. That did it, she would have to go down.  
_"And I just figured out how I can make this a little easier"_ she thought to herself mischievously.

She took a scroll from her shin and threw it into the air. Performing a string of hand seals she leaped up after it. From it she summoned a second, humongous scroll, which flew open as she took it. Tenten watched with intrigue from the crowd. She had never taught her anything like this. This would be interesting.

"Ninja Tool Summoning: Great Caged Defense" Ino cried out as she placed her back against the scroll; the blood from her wound activating the summon. A large, spherical steel cage, covered with sharp spikes formed around her. Sakura just barely managed to avoid colliding with it as it fell past her, crashing into the ground making a huge crater.

Ino grinned: from in here she could safely recover chakra, rest, plan a new strategy and even atack if necessary. She had thought of this long ago and built the sphere out in the forest near her team's usual training ground. After concealing it with a talisman sustained genjutsu she had left it alone fo use in an emergency. First she used her limited medical knowledge to heal her wounds, and was sure that Sakura was doing the same outside.

Once she'd finished that she scanned the outside of the cage for her temporary team-mate. she found her, as she had expected, crouching and healing herself. She debated whether it was worth trying to force her to quit, as she'd tried last time. After all, there was no Naruto around to bolster her strength this time. But she soon abandoned the idea. No doubt Sakura would have built up her defenses against that. So what should she do?

Then it hit her. She rolled out a fresh scroll and began scribbling across it. This was dangerous, and a long shot, but it might work. She performed yet another sequence of hand seals. Suddenly, her steel cage exploded, sending spikes and broken metal everywhere. Sakura did her best to dodge the onslaught, but it had been so sudden and unexpected that she wasn't able to avoid several injuries.

Then out of nowhere she felt a blinding pain in the back of her head. All she saw as she fell down into unconsciousness was Ino panting heavily over her with a chakra burned hand. So she had tried to use a chakra enhanced punch? Well it had been inefficient, but effective enough to knock her clean out.  
"Well... done..." she muttered as she collapsed.

"Victory goes to Ino Yamanaka"

The crowd roared with applause and excitement as she made her way back up to the observation area. She received a polite congratulation from Katsurou as she went to rest against the wall. She'd need to recover as much of her strength as possible. She watched as Rikuto went down to the arena again. She thought she heard Kankuro groan something about "having to fight another bug freak" as he came across from the other side of the staircase.

* * *

Up in the viewing boxes, Shikamaru smiled. That had been an impressive fight. He'd expected Choji to get further than Ino in these exams, after all he'd heard all about his training and preparations, and nothing of hers.  
"I guess I really have lost touch with them lately" he mused.

Yawning he leaned back. He knew he should really be watching the fight, being a proctor and all. But everyone here had already passed his test, so he knew how they stood as far as he was concerned. Besides, it was a beautiful day, the clouds were drifting across the light blue sky, minding their own business. The young chunin spotted one that looked somewhat like a flower, which brought his attention back to an enigma which had been bothering him for months.

He supposed the flowers could have come from someone outside the village; someone he'd helped in the past showing their gratitude. But the sheer size of the bouquet and the type of flowers that made it up made him doubt it. Also, if it had been simply for gratitude then why would the sender request anonymity? No, it was definitely an admirer of sorts. Shikamaru gulped slightly, turning pink.  
"What a pain" he mumbled directing his gaze elsewhere. He couldn't help but notice a familiar face forming in the clouds, almost as if in answer to his thoughts.  
"No... that's just not believable" he thought to himself, but whether or not he actually believed himself, he wasn't sure.

"Victory goes to Rikuto Aburame"

He was brought back by Genma's announcement. Now _that_ was interesting. That Kankuro had been beaten by one of the new rookies. They certainly seemed skilled enough. Then again, he already knew what was coming up. Katsurou had developed his first unique jutsu not long before becoming a gennin. As far as jutsu went, he was as much as a genius as Shikamaru was himself. On top of that, he was good at keeping calm under pressure, which helped his judgement. While he may not be the greatest at strategy and planning; when it came to deciding the best course of action in the middle of a given situation, he was the one you wanted calling the shots.  
"Well cousin, let's hope you have better luck than me"

"Katsurou Nara, Naoki Hazashi; please make your way to the arena"

* * *

The two shinobi stood opposite each other, each with a calm expression. Naoki gripped the handle of the sword on his back.  
"I'll give you the option of leaving this arena in one piece... or twenty" he threatened with a malicious grin. Katsurou raised an eyebrow.  
"Well I'll be leaving in one, of course" he answered, "You won't cut me with that butter knife of yours"  
The grass ninja growled and crouched, ready to dash forward. Katsurou sighed and glanced at Genma, who had raised his hand.

"Begin!"

_A/N I don't know what's given me my inspiration lately, but whatever it is I hope it doesn't leave. At least there are only four matches left by normal tournament standards. hope you're still enjoying. Thanks to all my reviewers. You make Nara's Ego happy!_

I've decided to break my "Two in Reserve" rule to explain the current situation. I only have one chapter left to write. Once that is done I will be posting the rest of the story, two chapters and an epilogue, all at once. That way I can finally say "I've finished a fanfic" and I can get on with a collaboration with DJ-Rage (I've "subtly" mentioned this before). I'll try and get the finale written before the end of next week. No promises though.

Teaser:

She kept her voice down so only Ino, and possibly Genma, would be able to hear her.  
"I can't tell you how much I've been looking forward to this; to crush your pathetic dreams in front of those most precious to you"


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen - Of Shadows and Hearts  
  
Naoki lunged forward almost before Genma finished the instruction. In one fluid movement he flicked his sword out of it's sheath and swung it straight for his opponent's neck. He was so sure of his success that he was caught off balance when his blade whistled through the air. Before he could even register that he'd missed, a hand gripped his wrist and twisted it, forcing him to drop the sword.

Katsurou reached for the sword, however, it was singing into the ground and soon reappeared by Naoki's side.

"Bokusouken won't allow anyone but me to wield it" he explained with a smug grin. The grass ninja brought his sword up in front of him again. "I was hasty then, I won't make the same mistake twice"

"Then get on with this fight, so you can make your second" Katsurou taunted. So, separating this guy from his sword wasn't going to be that simple. No problem, as they say; there's more than one way to skin a cat. He darted back towards the trees, with Naoki close on his heels. Glancing upwards he made a note of where the sun was in the sky as he landed in the shadows of the arena wall. Spinning around he formed the Rat seal. Naoki froze.  
"What the hell?"

A thin black line stretched to Naoki's shadow from Katsurou's. Shadow Possession. The young Nara gennin smirked as he turned around, with Naoiki mimicking his moves, so that now they faced away from each other. Under his opponent's control, Naoiki brought his arm back, and with a mighty swing, he threw his sword away. The blade whistled through the air and planted into the wall inches from Tsunade's head. The Hokage smiled.  
"Not a bad throw, kid" she mumbled as Shizune stared at the quivering sword in shock.

Katsurou turned back to face his opponent.  
"If your opponent's weapon is evidently their strength; then you must separate them from that strength" he stated, as if reading from a textbook. "Since I've now accomplished that, and your sword is technically out of bounds. I will give you the option to surrender"  
To his surprise, Naoki laughed.

"You think I need my sword to beat a runt like you?" he mocked, "All you've done is forced me to pummel you into oblivion myself"  
Katsurou sighed. He had really hoped he could avoid this. He reached up the front of his shirt and removed four shuriken from a chest holster.  
"Last chance" he warned, readying himself to throw. His challenger remained persistent however. "have it your way"

He threw the shuriken, releasing the shadow possession at the last second to avoid sustaining damage himself. He cursed as he saw his opponenet fall back and duck the attack. That was the only flaw in this technique; if the opponent had an unearthly reaction speed then they'd notice the jutsu breaking and dodge. Katsurou flinched as he saw the other gennin leap back to his feet and rush him.

"Dammit, Ninja Art: Shadow Mimicry"

His shadow connected with Naoki's just in time to copy his movements and block the first punch. As Naoki was throwing punches and kicks, Katsurou's body mirrored his every tiny movement, blocking every blow in the vicious assault. He felt like a puppet, but at least it kept him from taking the beating. Eventually Naoki leaped back and the jutsu cancelled.  
"You're a tricky one, aren't you?" he panted. "Guess I'll just have to use Ninjutsu"

Before he could make a single hand seal, however, Katsurou was behind him, with a kunai pressed against his throat.  
"I've had enough of you. Surrender or die"  
His voice was thoroughly chilling. And how had he gotten behind him? The grass ninja's arms fell to his side. He grit his teeth as he tried to think about what he'd seen. In that split second, the kid had seemed to fall into the ground. Then it hit him: the shadows. He must be able to travel through shadows. That was how he had dodged the first attack. Sneaky little brat. Nonetheless he had lost. he spat out a withdrawal and Genma declared the match over.

Katsurou walked over to Genma.  
"I'd like to withdraw from my next match"  
Those who had heard this gasped and loud protests came from teh crowd. Ino herself couldn't believe it. after watching him fight she had felt sure that he had a good chance of winning. But even more outraged than the crowd, was Rikuto. Who showed emotion for the first time since Ino had met him. Katsurou raised his hands to the crowd.  
"I'm sorry, especially to Rikuto, and Manami; i know you both wanted to fight me" he stated with a slightly cheery tone, "But my chakra is spent, I wouldn't be able to fight at my maximum, like I know you'd want me to"

This seemed to calm Rikuto down at least, he still seemed immensely disappointed. The crowd, however were less forgiving as he walked back up to the observation deck.  
"There's always next year" he said optimistically.  
Ino was about to point out that he might still be promoted to chunin, but then she heard her name called.

"Temari of the Sand, Ino Yamanaka; please make your way to the arena!"

Finally. The match she'd been dying to fight in. Time to pay her back for her help. On the way down to the arena, neither kunoichi looked at each other.  
"Thank you" Ino said bluntly.  
"Don't bother" Temari grunted.  
"I don't know how it works in Suna, but here in Konoha we show gratitude when we're given help"

They took their places opposite each other. Ino had been carrying her headband in her hand ever since her match with Sakura had ended. She began to tie it now. Across from her, Temari seemed to be trembling. She kept her voice down so only Ino, and possibly Genma, would be able to hear her.  
"I can't tell you how much I've been looking forward to this; to crush your pathetic dreams in front of those most precious to you"  
Ino's stomach tightened. She glared across at the sandy-haired girl. What did she have against her that made her so excited at the prospect of beating her?

"Don't look so indignant" Temari growled, "You think you've fooled everyone with your little charade. pretending to have eyes only for that Uchiha kid"  
Ino's face went from annoyed to shocked.  
"Don't flatter yourself, I saw through you back at the last exams, while Shikamaru was fighting that sound village girl. Anyone who'd paid any attention could clearly see you cared more about his victory than Sasuke's"  
Ino's features hardened. So she knew, big deal. What difference did it make to her?

"Begin!"

Ino instinctively jumped backwards to put herself at a distance from Temari and that fan of hers. But the Suna shinobi wasn't finished with her rant.  
"Y'know, peaople like you make me sick" she shouted across at her before leaping forward and sending a slicing wind towards the blonde ninja. "People who lie to themselves, pretend to be someone they're not. And why? To be popular, to be accepted"  
Ino took cover behind a tree. This was going to be tricky. She was already coming at her with all her strength.

"Although I suppose in your case I can see why" Temari spat, "After all, why would_ he_ be interested in a brainless, spoiled, image-obssessed diva like you"

Ino started to quiver. That bitch! How dare she! image-obssessed, she might be; but Ino was cerrtainly not brainless. After all, she had gotten the highest overall grade in her Academy class. What did this sand ninja know? Her mental grumbling was interrupted as her cover was torn out of the ground. Temari was standing right behind her. Ino just managed to turn and block a strike from the folded fan.

"You and I both know he'd rather have a smart, mature, practical woman. Someone like... Oh, I don't know...me?"  
Ino ducked and aimed a leg sweep at her opponent, attempting to knock her off her feet. Knowing full well that this wouldn't work, she used the momentary distraction to dash around the arena perimeter. She'd had enough of this girl and her mind games. Shikamaru wasn't like that. He wouldn't turn a girl down just because she was a little childish. Would he?

She shook her head. She couldn't afford to let Temari under her skin. She wasn't going to fall for it. What she was going to do, was force her to surrender.

"I don't know what you think you're going to do" Temari called across to her, "But I know all about your Mind Transfer Jutsu; it won't work if I keep moving" the Suna shinobi kept a light jog as she fixed her eyes on Ino. She remembered the little tramp's tactics from before. She was hardly even worried if she got hit by it. After all if that useless Sakura girl could get out of it, then surely she could. Though she'd rather not take the risk.

"Not all of my jutsu are slow!" Ino called as she sprinted at a surprising speed towards Temari, "But soon you'll know just how_ that_ feels"  
She leaped up into the air, putting herself between Temari and the sun. Throwing makibishi spikes down to slow her opponent, she started performing hand seals.  
"Horse, bird, ox, bird, horse" she mumbled to remind herself of the pattern, before placing her thumb and forefinger tips together and extending her pinkies.  
"Ninja Art: Mind Body Delay!" she called as she landed.

Temari froze. What did that little swine say? Mind Body Delay? Had it hit? she couldn't tell. Deciding to risk it she tried to run towards her opponent. However she stood still a further ten seconds before her body reacted to the thought.  
"What the!" she cried, "What the hell have you done to me you brat!"

Ino grinned. Mind Body Delay. It placed a blocker on the targets mind, causing signals from the brain to take longer reaching the body. Anything Temari wanted to do would take ten seconds longer. So, if Ino were to throw a kunai, it would take ten seconds for Temari's instinct to dodge to kick in. This of course was useless. The only way the sand ninja stood a chance was if she knew what Ino would do ten seconds in advance. To demonstrate, Ino took out a kunai and threw it at Temari's foot.

The blade hit it's target, causing Temari to cry out in pain. Ino flicked a strand of hair out of her face.  
"This is just the beginning. Surrender now, or for the next three minutes, you're my new pin cushion"  
It was harsh. But Ino wanted Temari to submit on her own. That way she would be acknowledging Ino as the superior kunoichi. In her gut she felt that this wasn't strength; it was brutality. But it was Temari's own stubbornness that caused it.

Looking up Ino was shocked to see tears trickling down her enemy's cheeks. It was then that Ino saw it: Temari truly loved Shikamaru too. She knew it was foolish to allow emotion to interfere with her ninja career. But this fight was already as much about emotion as it was ever going to get.  
"So you won't surrender"  
"I can't" Temari responded after a pause.  
Ino sighed. In a second she was right in front of Temari. In three she had discarded of the fan. In seven she had embraced her.

Three seconds later, Temari's face went from shock to irritation and finally to pieces. She sobbed into Ino's shoulder. This swine, this princess, this bimbo. She had really beaten her. Even if she didn't have a kunai tip lightly pressing against her back, directly behind her lung, she already knew she'd lost the fight. She had been wrong about her. She wasn't the weak little girl that Temari had perceived. Somehow; she'd found the strength to fight for what her heart truly desired.  
"Just do it" she choked.

Ino had no intention of killing Temari. Nor of forcing her surrender. Not any more. She wasn't going to let stubborn pride, or a senseless rivalry ruin her life anymore. She'd lived through that with Sakura already. She wasn't going to make a rival of Temari; because she knew that she was the better woman. She knew that Temari could see that now. She looked across at Genma. He seemed to understand.

"Victory goes to Ino Yamanaka"

Medical ninja appeared to help Temari, but Ino waved them away. The wound was superficial, and the jutsu could be released easily. After healing her foot, the two of them started to make their way back to the Observation deck. There was to be a half hour intermission before the final fight.  
"So, are you going to tell him"  
"I don't think my pride could handle going to him as a loser"  
"You really don't know him, do you?"  
"The one thing I envied you these last few months"  
"You've taught me more than you know"  
"You've shown me that I can't see everything"  
"Nobody can"  
"Just make sure you don't choke after you win"

-  
A/N: I really don't know how this will read to other people... it makes sense and seems realistic to me, but then i picture it in my head as I write it... oh well...

We're getting close to the end it seems. One match left in the exams.

Teaser:  
This was insane. If even _one _of these hit her, it was all over.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen - A Pink Sky At Night

Ino stood outside the arena, getting some fresh air as she prepared herself mentally for the final round. She had no idea how she intended to win. She didn't have much left up her sleeve. She'd used more in those first rounds than she'd have liked. But that couldn't be helped now. She didn't have time to worry about it; after all she needed to focus on replenishing her chakra.

"Hey Ino!"

She knew that voice, and was glad to hear it. She turned to see her team-mate walking towards her, potato chip bag in hand, munching away as he always did.  
"Choji! You're up and about again. That's good" she said with a smile. She wondered if he'd been following the exams while he was recovering. Her curiosity was soon sated.

"So you're out here, does that mean you're out too?"

She couldn't help but laugh at his sympathetic looking face. She wrapped her arm around his thick neck, grappling him in a friendly headlock.  
"Not me!" she said proudly, "I've fought my way to the final match!"  
Choji laughed and almost dropped his chips  
"That's great!" he congratulated loudly, twisting out of the blonde's grip, "So who are you against? That Katsurou guy?"

Ino spent five minutes filling Choji in on everything he'd missed. He'd been paralyzed for about twenty minutes, and had gone to Ichiraku's afterwards. Just as she'd skimmed over her match with Temari (leaving a lot out), the spotted two figures approaching the arena. When they got closer she realized it was Naoiki and the grass ninja who had been prematurely disqualified. The former was pushing the latter along in a wheelchair, and both looked quite happy, all things considered. As they approached they stopped next to Ino and Choji.

"Excuse me" the wheelchair bound one piped up. "Are the exams over"  
After he had been given a brief upshot of what his team-mate hadn't been able to fill him in on he nodded and sighed slightly.  
"So it seems my sacrifice was meaningless... if Yui lost after all" he glanced down at his knees, "I just wanted to see her smile again.. for real"  
Naoki placed a hand on his shoulder.  
"Don't be that way Shou; she didn't care about winning, she just wanted to fight last years best. Although..." he looked up at Ino, "...it seems that title is yours this time"

Ino blushed and smiled.  
"Well I don't know about that. I think your friend would have had me down for the count" she said modestly. It felt so weird to have people she didn't know, from a foregin village, comment on her abilities. Naoki seemed to have cheered up considerably since his match.  
"Even if I didn't win it's some consolation that I drove him to his limit" he explained.

Ino took a deep breath and turned back towards the arena. "Well, I suppose this is it" she said nervously. She wasn't worried about the fight, or about Rikuto. She wasn't even scared that she might lose. She was absolutely terrified that she wouldn't be able to go through with her promise, even if she won, even though she had sworn to repay Hinata for her help, even though she'd come so far.

Her fears were drowned out by a loud round of applause behind her. She spun around to find that Sakura, Tenten, Neji, Lee, Hinata, Kiba, Shino, Asuma, Kurenai, Gai, Kakashi and even Izumi, from the Waterfall village had joined the group. The applause died down and some of them started giving words of encouragement, almost as if they knew. She turned to the arena with a new fire behind her eyes. She almost thought she heard Hinata and Tenten thanking everyone, but she was to pumped up to register it.

* * *

"Before we begin, I'd like to say it's an honour to face such a strong kunoichi"  
Ino smiled her thanks across to her opponent. She was a bit too surprised to reply otherwise. They stood about ten metres apart. Genma raised his hand for the final time today. The crowd was silent for the first time since Tsuade's speech.

"Begin!"

Ino ran faster than she had ever ran in her entire life. But this was the first fight where it was _towards_ her opponent. She had to keep him in her sights and interrupt any jutsu he tried to pull off. But then he was an Aburame, no doubt he'd have some sort of bug swarm to use to his advantage. What was it Shino's did again? They ate chakra or something similar. That wouldn't be good.

She sidestepped past him and planted an explosive tag on the back of his hoodie. When the smoke cleared a swarm of wasps flew after her. She had known it was a clone from the beginning. She planned to keep moving, and to watch for those blades of his. If possible she would end this quickly. If not then she'd improvise.

"Ninja Art: Hive Rising"

An incredible buzzing sound rang through the arena as Rikuto was lifted high into the air on what appeared to be a giant vibrating disc. Ino gasped as she realized that he was riding a giant shield of wasps. She didn't know what was coming but she knew it couldn't be good. She darted behind a pile of trees which Temari's slicing wind had cut down.

"Rain of Venom!"

Ino just barely managed to pull a log over her head as the sound of thousands of stingers striking the wood and the ground around her pattered in her ears. If the name was anything to go by then every single point was poisoned. This was insane. If even _one _of these hit her, it was all over. She would have to either wait until he realized that she was sheltered, or find a way to break it. There wasn't anything she could do from here, she couldn't move as the log she held above her was resting on a tree trunk which covered her from the side.

She held her breath as the deadly rain stopped. Was he out of chakra? had he realised that his attack wasn't working? She waited and listened for some sign, watched the ground to see if the great disk moved to allow sunlight into the arena again. She gasped as she noticed the trillions of stingers on the ground quivering.

Rikuto kept his eyes fixed on the pile of logs, branches and trunks. She had to be under that. Carefully manipulating his chakra he attempted to fire the needles from the ground under her cover to end the match. His brow creased as he switched his attention to the other end of the arena, where the blonde was now standing.

Once more he tried to relaunch his weapons at her, but again they struck a log. So she was using substitution. Again and again, no matter how fast he launched hsi attack she switched with another log. At one point it simply appeared that he was firing at logs which appeared in mid air.  
"She's quick..."  
"Quicker than you know!"

The Aburame barely had time to realize what had happened before Ino had his hands behind his back. How had she managed to get past all his needles? Deciding to worry about it later he stretched out his fingers, intending to prick her with the Scorpion Blades. However he couldn't seem to push them from his hands the way he normally did. What on earth was wrong with him?

Ino breathed heavily as she grinned. It had taken every ounce of concentration she could muster to turn the tables. First she used substitution repeatedly to lull him into a false sense of security. Then she transformed into one of those needles and waited for him to throw her up past his wasps. Now that she had him in her grip she needed to stop him from being able to let anything else loose from that hive body of his.

Her medical training had come in handy for this, as well as her ability to manipulate her chakra, as she had with her hair trap last time. She had forced her chakra around his body, preventing any jutsu from being able to break it. It wouldn't last long but it would help he rnext move. As she predicted his insect platform disperesed, causing them to fall.

This was it. It was time to end it. She remembered the bouquet she had put together what now seemed like forever ago. Every flower in that arrangement was a fragment of her heart, and she wasn't going to give it away needlessly.

"Pride!"  
She swung her left fist up into a fierce uppercut.

"Timidity!"  
She followed this with a right roundhouse kick.

"Inspiration!"  
Her right hand crashed into the back of his skull.

"Everlasting love!"  
She spun into a heel kick.

"Admiration!"  
She chopped the side of his neck with her left hand.

"Happiness!"  
she snapped around, elbowing him in the ribs.

"Memories!"  
She slammed her head back into his jaw.

"Friendship!"  
She performed a left leg sweep.

"Sincerity!"  
She spun around and planted both pams into his shoulder, turning him.

"Affection!"  
She brought her left knee between his shoulder blades

"Beauty!"  
She drove a right jab into the base of his spine.

"Loyalty!"  
She spun him around and smashed his left knee with a vicious kick.

"Adventure!"  
She brought her elbow around into the back of the other knee.

"Courage!"  
She kicked him above her.

"Truth"  
She spun around and knocked him to the ground. Finally landing next to him. He was just barely standing. Ino leaned back.

"Ino Yamanaka, Special Secret Taijutsu: True Love Sixteen Hit Combo!"  
She drove both her fists directly into his face. If the combo itself wasn't inhuman enough, the chakra coating Ino had put around him had intensified every blow. Exhausted, Ino fell to the ground, just barely aware of a large group of medical ninja rushing past her towards Rikuto.

Then was that it? Had she won? If the medics were interfering then that meant that Genma had decided to end the match. She thought she saw Shikamaru's blurry outline before she blacked out.

* * *

She woke up in an unfamiliar room. She recognized the smell though. She was in the hospital. She sat up and groaned loudly. Her muscles were aching something fierce. She tried to remember what happened. She remembered crouching under a log. After a few minutes she remembered up to where she blacked out.

Her first feeling was regret. She hoped that Rikuto was alright. She made a note to apologize as sincerely as she could when she got the chance. Then she felt a slight lump in her throat. so... had she won? had she been disqualified for exxcessive violence? No, that couldn't be the case; the fights were to the death if the competitors were so inclined. But, if she had been unable to move, then maybe she had lost.

Her queries were soon answered by a loud scream of "congratulations" and a blur of pink and brown as Tenten launched across the room, hugging her. Ino cried out as her muscles objected to this attack. Tenten apologized hurriedly as Hinata closed the door behind them.

"We came to see if you had come around yet" she explained as Tenten stood nearby grinning. Ino couldn't help but smile. So she'd won the match. Still, that didn't mean she'd passed the exams. She carefully slid her legs over the edge of the bed and turned to the others.  
"Is Rikuto okay?"  
The other two laughed nervously.

"He's a little disappointed that he won't be able to eat solid food for a while" Tenten commented, "but otherwise he seems to be okay"  
This earned her a skeptical look from Hinata.  
"He's in a full body cast, it's a miracle that he can even complain" she corrected her friend. Noticing Ino's horror-stricken face, she quickly squeaked. "Oh! Don't worry! He doesn't hold anything against you! He said he was actually really impressed!"

Tenten giggled inthe corner she had gone to sit in.  
"And he wasn't the only one" she sang lightly. "We made sure our teams sat near the officials booth. I'm sure i heard Shikamaru at one point during your match with Temari" She put on an expression of mock surprise and imitated Shikamaru's voice eerily well.  
"Woah... is that really Ino?"  
Hinata chuckled into her hand as Ino blushed, unable to supress an awkward smile. Tenten nodded towards the cupboard next to the bed.  
"Why don't you go ahead and get dressed" she said with a wink.

Ino frowned in confusion. What on earth had gotten into her? Why the sudden interest in Ino changing. She had to admit she was suspicious and a little worried. But when she opened the cupboard it all became clear. For a moment she thought that someone else's clothes had been put in her cupboard; but there was no mistaking these were her belongings. However, on top of her usual outfit, there sat a puffy green jacket, with a piece ov paper taped to it. Hands trembling she ripped off the paper and read. It was a performance report.

_Examinee: Yamanaka, Ino  
Age: 14  
Previous Tests: 1  
Team: Haruno, Sakura & Akimichi, Chouji  
Recommended: Sarutobi, Asuma_

First Exam: Passed  
Proctor Notes:  
Performed admirably when identifying fellow shinobi. Could have acted faster in self sacrifice, but ultimately made the correct decision.

Second Exam: Passed  
Proctor Notes:  
Lost their initial scroll in record time. Managed to work as a team to survive and reclaim oen scroll. However they only pass on a technicality. I would suggest a retest without the charity.

Third Exam: Passed  
Proctor Notes:  
Displayed an adept ability to overcome changing circumstances and overcome disadvantages. Could learn not to overdo it, but otherwise an excellent combatant.

Stapled to the report was a letter of congratulation, with details of her new chunin assignment. It wsa signed and stamped by Lady Tsunade. Ino couldn't believe it! She had passed! Sure ot wasn't a perfect report, but a pass was a pass. She turned to Tenten and Hinata, who were positively beaming at her. So they had known. tears flowed down Ino's face as she hugged them both; muscles be damned. Once she's calmed down she changed into her clothes and put on her new jacket.  
"I'm not sure it goes well with this color" she said disappointedly,

"Perhaps, but that's not important right now" Tenten said with a slimy tone. Ino gulped. She knew exactly what was coming. Looking at herself in the wall mirror, she didn't see the bratty little girl she used to be. but the strong confident woman she aimed to become.  
"Wish me luck guys" she said, walking towards the door.  
Just as she opened it she felt a blinding pain inher head. Someone had walked right into her.

"Sorry, I was just-"

The voice cut off. Ino opened her eyes and looked up. It was Sakura. Ino stood there, looking at her awkardly. She had so much she needed to say to her. After all, if it weren't for her... Ino doubted she'd have even made it through the forest. But words just refused to form in her mind. She was soon spared.  
"Ino..." Sakura muttered quietly. She seemed to be arguing with herself, She eventually just looked up at Ino with a huge smile on her face;

"That jacket clashes horribly with your outfit"

* * *

After stopping off at home for a change of clothes, Ino fidgeted nervously with the ends of her tight long-sleeved black top. She'd decided on a short black skirt and fishnets. It wasn't what she was used to, but at least it wasn't as hideous as she'd looked at the hospital. She walked through the streets of Konoha, absent-mindedly thanking people who congratulated her. By the time she decided to actually make her way to her destination, the sun was setting, painting the sky a light pink. She looked up at a cluster of clouds.  
"Huh... they almost look like roses..."

She took a deep breath as she knocked on the door. This time Shikamaru's mother answered. when she saw it was Ino her expression softened slightly. She'd always had a soft spot for Shikamaru's female team-mate; even though she always looke dlike she needed fed.  
"Here to see Shikamaru I assume?" she said cheerily, without waiting for an answer she turned her head and called her son through.

"Ino?" he said sleepily, looking across at the clock. "Not that I'm not glad to see you out of hospital but it's getting on a bit isn't it?"  
Ino gulped before smiling up at him.  
"I need to speak with you" she said simply, feeling hr cheeks reddening she stammered, "W-walk with me?"

After a few seconds of contemplation he disappeared inside for a minute and returned with his jacket on. The two of them set off towards the training grounds just outside the village. They made occasional small talk; Shikamaru congratulated her on passing. Told her everything that had happened afterwards. Ino told him how Tenten and Hinata had broken the news to her, and how the change in clothes was to acommodate the leaf green chunin jacket.

Soon they arrived at the grounds where their team first trained with Asuma. This place held so many memories for them, it just seemed to Ino the natural place for this. She turned to face her spacey looking companion and simply launched into it.

"Listen... Shikamaru; there's something I need to tell you. I shoud have done this years ago but I was stupid and stubborn and proud and childish and a whole load of other stupid stuff. But about four months ago I got sick of lying to myself. I've been telling myself for years that I love Sasuke, that only he was cool enough or cute enough for me" she choked slightly as she couldn't help but cry, gulping back her tears she continued:  
"But it was all an act; I don't know why I started but it was so hard to stop. I almost convinced myself it was true. But then we were put on a team. It became harder and harder to keep up the charade. I grew tired of it. One day, I put together a bouquet full of different flowers, each one with a thousand words to express how I felt. And before long, with the help of two really good friends, I made sure it got delivered to it's recipient"

She brushed her eyes with her sleeve and looked up at Shikamaru. His face was pale and full of shock. She knew he'd already reached the correct conclusion, but she had to say it, she had to get it off her chest.  
"Shikamaru... I gave you those flowers...because... I love_ you!"  
_She couldn't tell what was going through his mind. His mouth had opened as if he wanted to say something, but for once he seemed unable to think of a response.

Shikamaru had gone into a mental meltdown. This was something his had simply not been prepared to process. He looked down at the girl in front of him, and realised it wa the first time he'd really thought of her as a girl. In the past it had always been "troublesome woman" or "hyperactive airhead". He had always generalized. But why?

Truth be told he had tried to figure out his life from the beginning and set realistic goals. Become an alright ninja, earn enough to get along. One thing he had been sure of was that he would marry a girl who was neither too ugly or particularly beautiful. Now he thought of it, when he pictured that "out of his league" girl; the one that he thought would be too pretty to want to bother with him: he had always seen blonde hair... blue eyes... he had seen Ino.

"Ino...I..."

He was only able to stand and stammer out those two words. Looking at Ino as she stood there, tears staining her flushed cheeks. He thought back to his first days as a gennin. Ino had approached him then. She had explained her jutsu to him and essentially ordered him to look after her body when she was out of it, since "you don't like hard work anyway". He had declared it a pain at the time, but now he thought on it he had never complained about it after that.

Then he remembered the missions they went on. No matter how much of a drag they were, Ino kept them motivated and made sure they didn't slack off. On occasion she even made the most dull D-rank missions fun. She could be quite creative when she wanted to. Who knew she'd been harbouring something so deep set as this? She was practically falling to pieces.

That was what Shikamaru found the hardest to grasp, That she felt so strongly for him, of all people. Someone as pretty as her had to have guys practically falling at her feet. What made him so worthy of her affections? He rubbed his temples slightly with the tips of his fingers. He could feel a headache coming on, not to mention his heart was hammering a bruise into his chest.

"Can we... sit down?"

They walked across to a log at Asuma had cut a curve into a month or two after their team was formed, so that it made a makeshift bench. As Ino sat down she sobbed and glubbed with pure emotion. She wasn't sad though, she was just relieved. She hadn't felt so free in years. It was like some great clamp had been removed from her heart. She just sat there and waited for Shikamaru to tell her he was sorry, that he didn't return her feelings, that it was too much for him to deal with.

She turned her head to apologize to him; but instead her lips met his.

Ino's eyes widened in shock, but soon drifted shut as she melted into the kiss. The world was dead to her now. There was only her and Shikamaru; lost in their own personal bliss amongst the clouds. She was so happy it almost hurt. If it were possible she would have it so this moment would never end. However, their lips gently parted and she allowed her self to slowly fall into his arms.

The two of them sat there for longer than either of them cared to keep track of. Before long the light pink sky had darkened, and stars glittered in the cloudless night. It was then that Shikamaru began to speak softly.  
"Y'know, I never really put too much thought into things like, well, love and whatnot" he said awkwardly, "But when I thought about it, I realised that I'd always set you as the highest standard of woman. You're smart, beautiful, strong, not to mention you know how to keep morale up. It's rare to see such a diverse range of traits. I guess I always thought of you as out of my league, and that discouraged me entirely. But that didn't make sense. If that was the case, why not just move on and fall in love with someone else" he gulped slightly before continuing.  
"It wasn't until you told me you loved me, that I really thought about it and realised... I _couldn't_ love anyone else...".

Ino blushed and smiled from ear to ear. She felt like nothing could possibly bring her down. She made a mental note to find someway to repay Hinata and Tenten. Maybe she'd be able to help the Hyuga heiress with her confidence issues. As for Tenten, she was pretty poor at hiding at least a little crush on Neji. He may be a bit of a rock, but Ino reckoned she could crack him.

But all that would have to wait. Tonight was about them. Their love. Their happiness. Their once in a lifetime, dream come true.

A/N: 12:06am, and I finally finish. I need to make a slight edit to the Epilogue and then I'll post chapter 13, this chapter and the Epilogue, and then thats me done! I can't believe it!

Even though it's over I still appreciate reviews! Especially if you think there was something I could have done better.

Next Project is the Collaboration with DJ-Rage. Our joint account is YoinokuchiStudios, the story is Nightfall. It's a sequel to his story "Sandstorm" but it will feature elements from this fic too. The prologue is up, so blah blah shameless self endorsement.

~ Nara


	15. Chapter 15

Epilogue

"Okay, when I call your name, I want you to stand up and tell me why you became a ninja; what is your dream?"

The young Academy students sat transfixed. Their new teacher sure was pretty, and from what they'd heard, very strong too. One by one they stood and gave their reasons; family, friends, strength, village pride.

Ino smiled. They weren't much younger than she was, but still she felt like she was looking back to her own Academy days. Back then things had seemed so complicated. She wish she'd known back then. Maybe she'd find time to teach some of these kids that sort of thing between transformation and clone jutsu.

Shikamaru looked down at the classroom from the roof of a nearby building. Well it had only been natural to choose Ino as an Academy instructer, smart as she was. he'd have to get back to his duties soon.  
"I reckon they can wait... just a little longer" he said smirking as he watched Ino begin her lesson.

Choji, Tenten, Neji and Lee panted as they collapsed to the ground. Gai was being even more merciless than usual in light of his teams failure in the exams. Choji was just unfortunate enough to be caught on his way to Tanzaku town, and got roped into their demonic training regime. This couldn't be fair; he'd just wanted to go get some food from the festival. Still, he had to admit he was enjoying training a lot more nowadays. Even Asuma thought that he needed to calm down these days.

* * *

Hinata stood in the training field, focusing her chakra. She brought her hands together and activated her Byakugan. moments later she darted into the trees and came back later with a beetle on her forefinger.  
"Found it Shino" she said proudly.  
The bug user held out his arm and took the beetle back. Her vision was improving greatly. next time they wouldn't have any problem finding enemies. A fiasco like that was more than their pride could handle. Not to mention Kurenai had decided to put them through the training programme from hell every day.

Kiba and Akamaru returned with another beetle.  
"Hinata won that round" Shino said blankly. "Looks like she's finally overtaken you two"  
"No fair! You hid ours better"  
"The rules are to find a beetle in the forest. You could have brought back the one she found and it would still have counted. Face it, you're slipping"

Hinata sensed a fight, so she vanished. She had other things on her mind. She kept thinking about how much happier Ino seemed these days. Her strength had inspired Hinata. Some day she would be strong enough to confess her feelings. She still had a couple of years. She was determined; when he saw her, he'd see a new Hinata.

* * *

Sakura watched as Tsunade demonstrated how to rewire nerves using chakra. It was pretty complicated, but Sakura was confident that she could ge tthe hang of it. The Hokage couldn't help but notice that her apprentice seemed a lot happier lately.  
"You win the lottery or something? You've been smiling for weeks" she said cheerily. Sakura giggled.  
"You could say an old friend of mine recovered recently"  
The two of them continued their work in positive moods, while the sun outside shone down on Konoha.

* * *

That evening, Ino stormed through the streets of Konoha. This was typical; those two _knew_ how nervous she was about this dinner. Yet still they had "unforseen circumstances which prevented their attendance". Yeah right, they were ditching her and she planned to get them back for it some day. What now though. She had reservations for four, and now, thanks to Hinata and tenten, she and Shikamaru were going to show up by themselves.

She turned a corner and spotted Katsurou and his team at Ichiraku's. Rikuto was busy trying to calm Ayame down after one of his wasps drifted past her. Ino grinned slyly as she noticed Manami and Katsurou blush and look aside after they both reach for chopsticks simultaneously. They had just set themselves as targets.

"Oh hi, fancy meeting you two here! I was just thinking it would be nice to have you join me and Shikamaru for dinner tomorrow night at that new restaurant in South town; I had friends who were going to come but they ditched me, can you believe it? The nerve of them, oh well at least I know you two aren't that rude. Well I'll see you tomorrow night at eight. Bye!"

She was in and out of there so fast that the two gibbering, scarlet red gennin had no chance to refuse or retaliate. Ino laughed heartily as she walked home. Looked like it was her turn to play the matchmaker in Konoha.

_End_

_A/N_: ...

...

... Did I just... _finish_ a fanfic...

Holy crap...

Well I'd like to thank my readers (reviewers especially), my friends here in Scotland for their help, especially DJ-Rage. Sandstorm was the best motivator of all.

I know I missed a few people out in the epilogue, but quite frankly I am tired. If you really want an epilogue for the Sand, Grass and Waterfall ninja then comment as such and I'll maybe add one to Shinobi Chronicles.

Hope you enjoyed this, until next time!

~ Katsumi Nara


End file.
